A Fate Worth Dying For
by MikkiOfTheAnbu
Summary: I am going to die. It's just a simple fact. I've accepted it, but in doing so have been broken. My disease is killing me, and I guess I'm okay with that. At least I thought I was until I met them. The ones who gave me a reason to keep on living.
1. Chapter 1

**Prologue: For Two Years**

I was seven years old when they told me that I was going to die.

(White walls. White floors. Suddenly turning black from the intensity of my gaze.)

It was early morning, and Grandpa had just gotten Ace and I up for school. It was my first day of kindergarten, one where I had been told I was going to make tons of friends and finally take my first steps towards my dream. I wanted to become an explorer, the kind who went to places all over the world discovering things and having awesome adventures. My friend, Shanks, was an explorer (well technically, he was a wildlife photographer, but who cares), and he even gave me his precious straw-hat to take with me on my journeys. He told me that to become as cool as him, I had to do two things: one was wear the coolest hat in the world, and the other was make it through school. Shanks was my role model. I wanted to be just like him when I grew up.

I remember staying up really late on the night before, far too excited to sleep for fear of not waking up in time to make it to school. I counted the stars in the dark blue sky outside my window and decided that I would have one friend for each tiny glittering light. When I finally nodded off, my hat was still stuck firmly on my head, filling my mind with dreams of far-off lands and exciting adventures.

I woke up with a dull ache in my chest.

When I opened my eyes, I immediately knew that something was wrong. My room was dark, darker than it should be at seven o'clock on a monday morning in September, and my eyes felt heavier than usual. I rubbed them sleepily, telling myself that I was probably still tired from counting stars all night, and swung my feet out of bed. Immediately a sharp pain shot through my chest, causing me to gasp and fall to my knees. I wondered what was wrong with me.

Climbing down the stairs to the kitchen, I found that the ache only increased, to the point where it became incredibly painful and hard to breathe. By the time I finally made it to the bottom, I was gasping for breath and clutching the front of my shirt. I was confused, and a little scared.

(What is going ON?!)

I grasped the banister in an effort to steady myself, thinking back to the night before. I had felt just fine then. Was it because I stayed up too late? Was I just really tired? I didn't know. Just then, Ace rounded the corner and saw me.

"Hey Luffy!" He said, grinning and walking over. "Finally decided to drag your sorry butt outta bed, huh?" I looked up at him and half-heartedly smiled back.

"Hey, Ace," I said groggily, keeping both my hands securely wrapped around the banister. "Where's Grandpa?"

"He's still in the kitchen," Ace frowned. He must have noticed the slight tremble to my frame and the fact that I was practically gasping for air. "Hey, Luffy, you okay?" He asked, reaching out with one hand to feel my forehead. "You look like you're about to collapse. Did you stay up all night like I told you not to?" I blanched. The last thing I wanted right now was to get chewed out by Ace for something that wasn't even really my fault.

"Um, no," I said, trying to look as innocent as possible. I must've failed miserably because Ace flicked me in the forehead.

"Liar," he said and put his hands on his hips.

My fingers had become sweaty and shaky from gripping the railing too tightly, and in one fluid motion I slipped and fell face forward. The impact sent a jolt through my entire body and I gasped loudly from the pain.

"Luffy?!" Ace cried, quickly kneeling down and flipping me over. "Hey, Luffy! What's wrong? Are you okay?!" He shook me slightly and I grimaced. I looked up at him, his freckles drawn up over his nose in a worried expression that wasn't like Ace at all. I tried to speak, to tell him that I was okay, but my mouth wouldn't work right. My vision slowly got blurrier and blurrier, and the pain in my chest overwhelmed every other sensation. I could faintly hear Ace begin to scream for Grandpa, and could barely make out the old man's hulking form as it rounded the corner and rushed over to us. The last thing I saw before my sight faded to black were a pair of large hands, reaching for me.

* * *

When I came to, I was in the hospital, nestled underneath a thin flannel blanket with a long tube sticking out of my arm. The room was dark, with only the pale red and green flickering of the various monitors and machines giving off any form of light.

I wondered if it was nighttime.

A doctor with a strangely-colored hat came in a little while after I woke up, followed closely by Grandpa and Ace. Ace looked like he had been crying, which unnerved me because Ace _never _cried. I tried to call out to them, but for some reason, the words caught in my throat and I couldn't speak. My whole body felt numb, and yet hot at the same time.

(It smells bad and I want to go HOME!)

The three approached my bed and upon seeing that I was awake, offered me three weak and yet honest smiles. At first, I didn't know what to make of them, but then Grandpa took my hand and I frowned. His fingers were shaking, badly. I thought that it might've just been me, but slowly gave up on that idea when I saw Grandpa's shoulders trembling as well.

I stared, fear creeping into me from a cold spot on my spine. The doctor, whose name tag red "Trafalgar Law," met my eyes and picked up a clipboard with some writing on it. He cleared his throat.

"Monkey D. Luffy?" he asked, looking at me with shadowed eyes. I nodded. "This morning, at approximately 7:10 a.m, you collapsed in your house with chest pains and trouble breathing, correct?" I nod again, my free hand unconsciously creeping up to feel the sore area around my chest. The doctor sighed, almost like he was displeased with my answer. "When your family brought you here this morning, you were in pretty bad shape. You had an irregular heartbeat and your lungs appeared to be highly inflamed. All we could do was put you on painkillers and oxygen. We drew blood and tissue samples to send off for testing, and a little while ago, we got the results back." He sounded tense. He was hiding something and I didn't like it. "I'm sorry to say that what we found wasn't good."

Despite the fact that I had no idea what he was talking about, I recognized the tone. Something was very wrong.

Ace had crept over to my bedside and buried his face in my blankets. I wanted to tell him to stop it, because it wasn't like him and that scared me. Instead, I stared hard at Grandpa, who wouldn't meet my eyes. I swallowed and took a deep breath.

When I spoke, it was barely above a whisper.

"What's wrong with me?"

There was a long pause, but at last, Trafalgar tilted his head down and read something long and medical-sounding off of his clipboard. He saw the confusion in my eyes, and shortened it into terms I could understand.

"You are going to die."

(I am freezing because I'm lying on the ice and I'm bleeding and I don't have one of Ace's shirts to staunch the blood.)

(my life)

(my life...)

* * *

I found out eventually that I had a sickness in my blood that was killing me slowly, and there was nothing that anyone could do to stop it.

I was going to die.

I was told that there were many things that I would be forced to abandon, like running and playing sports, as well as many dreams that I wouldn't be able to accomplish. I wasn't going to become a pirate, or an astronaught, or an explorer. Those were things only healthy kids grew up to be, and, starting with that first day beneath the knives and needles, I was no longer considered so. My life wouldn't be as long as other people's, and I had to live carefully, never overstepping a very specific set of boundaries if I wanted to survive. No more wrestling with my brother, or midnight trips with Grandpa to the ocean, or surprise training in the backyard under the warm branches of our oak tree. The outside world was entirely banished form my sight. I had to take medicine, and stay long hours at the hospital, where all anyone ever seemed to do was take blood or filter it carefully into my body. I was just beginning to imagine the adventures I would have growing up, adventures that could no longer take place. My hat was heavy on my head and the straws jabbed into my scalp with more ferocity than before, almost as if to say "This is your fault for not being strong enough."

(It's my fault)

(...Shanks)

In many ways, my sickness broke me. I could no longer participate in any of the activities I had previously, and sometimes my heart ached more than my body did. For a long time, I stayed broken.

Utterly.

Completely.

Entirely.

Until I met him.

For their credit, my brother and my grandpa took extremely good care of me, bringing me toys and telling me stories to keep me entertained during the long months I was forced to spend cooped up in my room. Whenever I cracked, they were there to gather up the pieces and glue them haphazardly back together. They were the reason I kept smiling. Grinning like a friggin' idiot despite the sting of the needles and the bitter taste of the medicine. I could tell that they loved me very much by the way they always smiled back and held my hands, but at the same time I knew that my illness was affecting them as much as it was affecting me. Ace cried a lot when I was first diagnosed, and all grandpa could do was hold us and tell us that everything was going to be fine, even though I knew it wasn't.

Personally, I didn't cry at all. Not once.

Whether it was acceptance or some other foreign emotion that kept me from shedding tears over my situation I didn't know, but I didn't let even a single drop escape my eyes. I think that Ace cried enough for both of us in those days, and grandpa's controlled yet audible sobs told me that he did as well.

I was strong, and yet at the same time made of glass, unable to change my fate. It was a very lonely existence.

It was like this for two years.

And then I met a boy named Zoro.

**Wow! First Fanfic of my life! I hope y'all enjoy it! PLEASE leave comments and reviews, I really appreciate it!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 1: Zoro**

The months passed in a haze of colors and sounds.

(White)

(Red)

(Drip)

(Drip)

(Drip)

Slowly, the gray walls and sharp-smelling medical equipment became my reality, and the tenuous yet constant blip of my heartbeat as displayed by a monitor was my new and somewhat harsh lullaby. My condition fluctuated, leaving me feeling like my normal and energetic self some days while others leaving me on the brink of tears with how much pain I was in. I lost weight and my skin became deathly pale. I wasn't allowed out of the house at all most days, and when I was it was only to leave for the crisp white rooms of the hospital. I was there so often that I carved my name into the wooden frame of the window overlooking my bed. I'm pretty sure I spelled it wrong, but at the time it didn't matter. I just wanted to be remembered.

My world became a series of three or four rooms connected by long, windowless passageways. And it hurt.

On my eighth birthday, I thought about death for the first time. In the past, I had been told that I was going to die, but until that day, when for the first time there were not a limitless amount of years and birthday candles and wonderful presents ahead, I hadn't realized what dying actually meant.

It meant finality. And goodbye.

I could count the years I had left to me on two hands, and that frightened me. I no longer had forever to figure out who I was, or even who I wanted to become because it no longer mattered. I wasn't going to be there for very long. My life was slipping away, and that meant leaving Ace and Grandpa and all of my hopes and dreams behind. I blew out my candles and had to bite my lip to keep from crying out. A forced smile wormed its way onto my lips, and I watched as two of my three most important people clapped and laughed and tried to keep up their pitifully cheerful charade. I think that they wanted to push away the idea of this being one of my few remaining birthdays just as much as I did.

That day was my first goodbye. Sitting in my room that night I cut a tiny line into the flesh of my wrist, counting down the years. I wondered how many marks I would have by the time my heart finally gave out. I bitterly cursed my fate, but at the same time, knew that it was pointless to fight against it. A part of me accepted the reality of what was going to happen and grew cold.

Another year went by and the part became even colder.

(One more tally makes two)

The first and second summers rolled by without me running merrily along the streets and through the parks with my brother. Winters without big-bellied snowmen and clouds of smoke drifting between chapped lips. Springs with flower petals uninterrupted by landing on a napping raven head. Autumns with great piles of leaves intact and rotting where people left them.

My windows became as thick as steel plates, trapping me within them. My bedroom was my prison. My I.V lines and tubing my shackles and chains. I drew the curtains and sat in darkness because it was too painful gazing out at the world as it slowly passed me by, and despite the fact that I knew they loved me and were constantly killing themselves with worry, Grandpa and Ace went about their lives as best they could. Ace with school, which I was forbidden to attend, and Grandpa with his job as a police chief.

I was often left alone.

I didn't mind being alone so much as I hated being left with only myself for company. There was no one to talk to, or to laugh with and cry with. My emotions were my own, unable to be shared or vented to anyone because usually no one was there.

And I was lonely.

A thin and yet miles thick pane of glass separating me from everyone and everything.

And then one day it finally shattered.

* * *

Tiny shards of glass embedded themselves into my carpet as I stared wonderingly at the event that had just taken place. Not two seconds ago, a baseball had crashed violently through my window and smashed it completely to hell, sending bits and pieces of glass flying in every direction and effectively breaking the barrier between my world of sterile darkness and the bright, lively one outside. The curtains that I had used to cover my window billowed in the now warm breeze that flowed into the room, and for the first time in what seemed like a thousand years, I caught a glimpse of what I had been missing so desperately.

Trees, as green as emeralds, loomed in my sight, overlapping with rooftops and telephone poles, all blanketed beneath an enormous blue sky. I quickly threw off my blankets and scurried over to the broken window. Pieces of glass tickled my feet as I drew near but I didn't care. I stared out of the opening and into the world, intoxicated by its beauty. I pulled the curtains all the way away from the screen and took in the full view.

It was breathtaking.

I don't know how long I stood there, but it must have been a long time because my legs began to tremble and my chest ache, albeit lightly. I gripped the front of my shirt tightly. Once again the pain and regret of being unable to interact with anything pertaining to actual _life _rising within me like a wave and crashing down. I wanted to turn away, but I couldn't. And I just stood there, watching.

A sudden sound roused me from my thoughts and I turned to see what it was. I saw that my door had been opened slightly, creaking as it went. This was odd because neither my brother nor my grandfather were supposed to be back at this time. It was still the early afternoon, and I was usually on my own until at least 3 o'clock. I stepped away from the window and towards the door.

"Is someone there?" I called.

It was then that a small green-haired head peered out from behind the door. He was a boy, a little older than me by his appearance. He had short light green hair on the top of his head, and his face was slightly pink from what I took to be embarrassment. I was stunned. I couldn't remember the last time I had met someone my own age besides Ace and I didn't know what to say, so I just stood there awkwardly and stared. The boy stepped out completely from behind the door and I saw how much taller than me he was. Despite the boyishness of his face, there was a stern no-nonsense air about him that screamed "Don't mess with me!", and his hands were shoved deep inside his pockets. I noticed that his left ear was pierced with three dangly gold earrings.

This kid was quite possibly one of the coolest-looking people I had ever met, and I instantly wanted him to be my friend. A wide grin stretched across my face and I held up my hand in greeting.

"Hey!" I said, smiling more widely than I'd done in months.

The boy looked taken aback, pausing before shutting the door behind him and stepping fully into the room. "Hey," he said gruffly.

"My name's Luffy! What's yours?" I said.

"Umm...it's Zoro," He replied, giving me a look like I was crazy. "I...uhh...didn't think that there'd be anybody home." He looked behind me and upon seeing the layer of shattered glass turned sheepish.

"Yeah, nobody usually does. Ace and Grandpa always leave me alone and I never go out so not many people know I exist." I said it so cheerfully and yet the words pierced me somewhere deep inside. Zoro raised an eyebrow and sighed.

"Look...I'm sorry about your window. I was aiming for a stupid bird that stole my lunch and I swear I didn't mean to break anything."

"That's okay!" I said, stooping to pick up the ball that I noticed was at my feet. I saw that there were severe scuff marks on it from the spot where it collided with the window and I gaped. "This thing's pretty beat up! You must be really strong!" I laughed and tossed the ball in front of my face.

"I guess," said Zoro with a shrug. "But anyways, the only reason I snuck in here was 'cause I thought no one was home and it would be a good opportunity to get my ball back."

"I see," I grinned. "Well, that's too bad then."

"Hm? Why's that?" he said, crossing his arms and frowning.

"Because," I said, smiling devilishly. "I don't want to give it back."

Zoro let out an exasperated sigh and rubbed his temple, an incredibly grown-up gesture. "Look, kid-"

"Luffy." I corrected.

"Okay, _Luffy. _I'm sorry I smashed up your window, but I'm on kind of a tight schedule right now and I really need that ball back." He glared at me and I snickered.

"Trade." I said simply.

"What?" he said tiredly, like he was lecturing a little kid.

"Trade for it. Your ball I mean. You have to offer me something, and if I like it, then you can have your ball back, _and_ I won't tell Grandpa it was you who broke the window."

He gawked at me, then closed his eyes in defeat and rubbed his head. I laughed and tossed the ball again. Zoro groaned and looked up at me. "Alright, what the hell do you want?"

I giggled and took a step closer. "I want you to be my friend." I said simply. Zoro looked confused for a moment and then blinked. He paused like he was waiting for me to say something else, and when I didn't he raised an eyebrow incredulously.

"Is that all?" he asked.

"Yup!" I said. The whole exchange was making me giddy with excitement. This was the first time I had ever tried to make a friend that wasn't my brother or an inanimate object, and the thought of having someone to play and talk with chipped away at the loneliness in my heart. My pain was momentarily forgotten and I just stood there, a happy glow enveloping my body.

Zoro didn't move. For a long time neither of us said anything. Finally, he shrugged and held out his hand. "Sure, why not." he said. I jumped up and let out a loud ya-hoo. I was so happy that the feeling tingled throughout every part of my body, making me feel lighter than air.

"Yay! My first friend!" I cried and grabbed Zoro's outstretched hand. "This means that you've got to come visit me whenever you have time! And bring snacks. I love snacks!" I yelled again and jumped, taking Zoro up with me. He gave me an irritated glare and yanked his hand back.

"Yeah yeah, now give me my damn ball!" He snapped.

I laughed and threw the ball to him, which he caught with ease and tucked into his pocket. He looked at a watch on his wrist and grunted.

"I've got to go now." He said. "My Dad's probably wondering if I got lost again. Bye, kid. Thanks for the ball." He waved his hand and turned to leave, but just before he reached the door I latched onto his hand, suddenly afraid. He turned back to me in annoyance, which quickly gave way to mild confusion at the sight of my face.

"Do you promise to come back?" I said, my pale hand trembling against his tan one. Zoro looked surprised and stared at my fingers on his arm, almost like he couldn't believe I had done that. He looked at me and his gaze softened. He probably saw the desperation in my eyes and the weariness etched on my face. He turned so that his body was facing mine and smirked.

"Of course I do." He said with conviction. "Once I make a promise I never go back on it. I've never done anything I regret and I'm not about to start now." He smiled and I let go. Something in his words made me believe him, and gratitude swelled in my chest as I watched him turn once more to leave. Before he shut the door, he looked back at me one last time. "Bye for now, Luffy."

(He said my name)

(The ice is melting and I blink at the sun because it is blinding)

As I lay in bed that night cool silver moonlight draped across my body for the first time in a long time. I thought about Zoro. My first ever friend. The cold place in me thawed a little and I grinned as I fell into sleep.

Waiting for a tomorrow I never thought I'd see.

(I am living)

(And it feels so _good)_

**My My! here's the second chapter already! I hope you guys like it and make sure to leave reviews. I really appreciate it!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 2: Zoro's Promise**

Zoro came to visit me just like he promised.

Ace and Grandpa had just left for work and school. When he showed up at my front door carrying two plastic bags wearing an annoyed scowl, I leaped at him and hugged him as tightly as I could. This earned me a prompt punch in the face and a venomous "What the hell, Luffy!?"

(He remembers my name)

I giggled and apologized, holding the fresh bump on my head with relish. It might've seemed a tad masochistic, but I missed the sting of a well-aimed fist and the feeling was actually welcome. I lead Zoro up the stairs and into my room. We sat on my bed as the sky cried fat runny tears that spattered my window (which Grandpa had fixed in a fit of near-psychotic rage), eating snacks from one of the plastic bags he had brought and reading the million or so comic books he had crammed into the other. Outside, dark gray clouds swirled overhead, and in the distance we heard thunder rumbling. It made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up but I didn't care. I had a friend. A real _living _human friend. One who talked with me and made jokes and got angry at me like any normal person would, instead of treating me like some paper doll that could rip at any moment.

It felt good, like stretching out some long forgotten muscle within me after years of disuse.

For the first time since my diagnosis, I was _warm. _

At first, Zoro and I didn't say anything to each other. We simply sat in comfortable silence reading and munching and listening to the metallic _ping _of heavy raindrops bouncing off my roof. It was nice, and even though he didn't speak, just the fact of Zoro's presence was enough to satisfy me. Eventually though, my new friend looked up from his comic book and so did I.

We started to talk. Before Zoro finally left, we had divulged enough personal information between us to fill an encyclopedia.

We talked about things we liked, which were primarily meat and swords, as well as things we hated or thought were stupid. Zoro told me that he wanted to personally hunt down and slaughter everything related to schoolwork or just school in general. I told him that vegetables were minions of Satan and that they deserved nothing but complete annihilation. He laughed at that and it made me smile.

One nice thing about talking with Zoro was that he didn't ask questions. He let me speak until I was done and then didn't say anything. He didn't pry about my personal life or my past and for that I was extremely grateful. I wasn't sure if I wanted him to know about my disease just yet, due to the fact that we had only just become friends and I didn't know how he would react to me telling him that I was dying.

I was afraid that if he knew he would leave.

(Alone)

It turned out that Zoro lived not too far from where I lived, which was why he could walk to my house and not get lost. I found out rather quickly that he had a terrible sense of direction, because I had to tell him where my bathroom was seven times before he finally found it! Whenever I laughed at him for this, he got really angry and started yelling at me to shut up. Of course, this only made me laugh more.

Time passed and eventually Zoro was forced to go home. It felt like a cold pack had just been placed over my heart and I begged him to stay a little longer.

He just shook his head and smirked. "No can do," he said. "My Dad's probably wondering where I am right now and it's getting late." I pouted and looked at him with sorrowful eyes. I didn't want him to leave. Not when we were having so much fun.

When Zoro didn't move I sighed in defeat.

"You'll come back though, right?" I asked hesitantly.

He patted my head and smiled. "Of course I will. We're supposed to be friends now, and friends always keep their promises." I beamed at him and he turned to go. As the door shut softly behind him, a sudden sense of excitement began to grow in my chest. Zoro was going to play with me again, bringing with him the warm inviting feelings I had felt by just being near him.

I couldn't wait.

**sooooooo. Chapter 2 is out! Ugh. This one was hard. I really wanted to push out a chapter today, but this is just sad. Oh well. Until next time!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 3: Zoro's Faith**

It had been over three months since Zoro had started to come visit me. He came almost every day now, each time bringing with him some form of game or toy for us to entertain ourselves with. He called me an idiot a lot and hit me, but in truth, I loved every minute of it. Just the normalcy of our situation was incredibly relieving. Zoro didn't see me as some dying little kid with no hope for the future. He was my friend, and treated me like he would treat anyone else. He saw me as an equal.

And I was happy.

One day, Zoro and I were sitting on my back porch, enjoying the warmth and light that the summer sun brought to the world. Zoro had fallen asleep against the side of the house an was snoring softly. I grinned at his sleeping face and gazed up at the sky. Today, it was a deep shade of brilliant blue, marred only by the occasional wisp of cloud drawn in by the breeze. The air was warm and smelled of earth and of green things growing. In all my time alone in my room, the smells were the things I missed the most. I traced a skinny finger over the spot on my chest where surgical scars met old skin and thought about death.

(again and again and again)

Beside me, Zoro grunted in his sleep, making me smile. Smiling was also a new occurrence for me. Before, whenever Ace or Grandpa had been around, trying desperately to distract me from my fate, I had smiled just to give them hope. It was a hollow smile, one that tore at my heart each time I used it, and held no meaning to me other than to prevent my loved ones from falling into despair with me. Now, my smiles were real. They were full of happiness and joy. Zoro brought that to me. I thought that I had given up on living the day I sealed myself in my room. I thought that growing up, following my dreams, and even living to see my next five birthdays, were all childish fantasies that I had no right to cling to. Being with Zoro gave me back something that I forgot.

Hope.

I had gotten to know Zoro a lot better in the past few months. He had told me things about himself that I knew for sure he hadn't revealed to anyone else.

How much he missed his mother.

How much he disliked his father.

He told me about the death of his dearest friend and rival, Kuina, and about his dream of becoming the greates kendo master in the world. I knew some who would have laughed at his dream, but I didn't. I told Zoro about my own dream of becoming a great explorer, and all about Shanks and my dearest treasure which was my hat. I avoided the subject of my illness, which I was still terrified of explaining to Zoro, and instead focused on all the fun we were having. That day, we had decided two things; One was that the worst sensation in the world was drinking orange juice directly after brushing your teeth, and the other was that the two of us were, in fact, best friends. It didn't take long to confirm this fact, just the simple question of, "Hey Zoro, we're best friends, right?" and the simple answer of "Of course, dumbass." This was based upon the knowledge that neither of us had any other friends to speak of.

When I asked Zoro why I was his only friend, he smirked.

"That's because all of the other kids are too scared to even come near me."

"I see." I said, and waited for him to continue because I could tell that he had more to say.

"All of the kids at my school, and even in this damn neighborhood, are just a bunch of weaklings incapable of doing anything for themselves. Sure, at one point I tried making friends with them, but they just hide behind their mommies and their daddies like they're some kind of fucking shield, and then run away whenever they have to deal with something on their own. They make me sick." He paused and sighed deeply. "You know what they call me? The call me 'demon', like I'm some kind of monster. All I did was beat up some brats who pissed me off, and all of a sudden, nobody wants to talk to me, or even look at me. That's why I usually don't go to school, because being around bastards like that does nothing but piss me the fuck off." He said this without any bitterness in his voice, only resignation, like he knew that this was the way the world worked and he didn't care enough to put a stop to it. I respected that. "What about you, Luffy? Why don't you have any other friends?"

I chuckled and contemplated how to answer his question. At last I sighed, pulling my legs into my chest and resting my chin on my knees. "That's easy," I said. "It's because I can't ever leave the house. Most of the time, I'm not even allowed to set foot outside my room. Just being here like this-" I gestured to the natural setting around us, "- would get me in a world of trouble." I muttered the last part and buried my face in my arms. I thought back to the first day of my diagnosis.

The needles. The sharp-smelling medical equipment. The doctors who look at you like you're already dead on your feet.

My arms trembled and I waited for Zoro to ask why my home was my prison. I peeked between my arms to see Zoro sitting there, hands folded nonchalantly behind his head, with the same bored expression on his face. He was silent, and watched the clouds roll by above us with mild interest before closing his eyes and leaning back.

"I see." He said. He sounded calm, bored almost, like he couldn't care less about me or about my situation. At that moment, I was extremely grateful to have Zoro for a friend. He wasn't judging me based upon my past or my life, only on what he knew to be certain: that I was his friend and that that was enough for him. I bit back tears of gratitude and held myself tightly. It was almost like I'd bee forgiven for some horrible sin I hadn't even meant to commit. I looked over at Zoro, who still had his eyes closed, and before either of us knew what was happening, I lunged at him and wrapped him in the tightest hug I could muster. I felt Zoro stiffen against me, unused to such displays of physical emotion. I thought that he would push me off and hit me for being stupid like he always did, but me must have sensed that I needed this and so he relaxed into the embrace like it was the most natural thing in the world.

I grinned, a wide, tooth-filled grin that seemed to encompass my entire face.

I burrowed into his shoulder and gave a muffled "thank you, Zoro," before drawing back and leaning against the side of the wall. The breeze tickled my hair and I closed my eyes, letting the calmness and warmth of the moment wash over me. Zoro was quiet, completely forgetting the hug that I'd just given him, and slowly I heard soft snores in his direction. When I opened my eyes, I saw that he had fallen asleep. I laughed and ran a hand through my messy hair.

Just then, I felt a sharp pain in my chest. I bit back a gasp and covered my mouth for what I knew would be a bloody coughing fit. For the next minute, my entire body was wracked with violent hacking that brought warm blood up my throat and into my fingers. I tried to stifle it, but it was just too painful. Eventually, I quieted down and gasped for air. I withdrew my hand from my mouth to inspect the damage. Sure enough, there was a bright red stain of sticky blood on my palm and between my fingers.

I felt eyes on me, and turned to see Zoro staring at me from his spot on the wall. My insides froze, and I moved to wipe the blood on my pants before his strong voice stopped me.

"Luffy," he said, his voice a calm sea compared to my whirlpool of thoughts. "...how bad is it?"

I stopped, freezing where i sat and staring at a hole in the air with disbelief. I looked up slowly. I was suddenly terrified. "... It's bad." I said, holding my head in my hands and fighting back a sudden wave of regret and sadness.

"So that's it." Zoro said. I looked up at him and saw an unreadable expression on his face. It was neither shock, nor acceptance, and it frightened me. I withdrew into my arms once more, Zoro averting his gaze and looking up into the sky.

I was so scared that I didn't even attempt to hide the tremble in my voice or the violent shake In my shoulders. The tenuous world I had built around Zoro and myself was breaking apart. He knew about my illness, which was the one thing I had told myself that I couldn't stand. I shook, at a loss for what to say. What would he do now? Would he leave, just like I feared? Or worse, would he stay, only out of pity for the poor terminally ill boy who so desperately craved companionship? I didn't know, and I wasn't all that sure that I wanted to find out.

When the silence between us stretched on, I simply apologized.

"I'm sorry, Zoro." I said.

He turned back to me so quickly I thought he might've injured his neck. "Don't you dare apologize!" He yelled, making me flinch. "This isn't your fucking fault, so don't go pretending that it is!"

I gaped. There was a thin layer of wet tears in Zoro's eyes, threatening to spill over at any moment. He wiped away at them furiously, only for them to be replaced the next second.

I stared, confused at what I was seeing. Zoro had never cried in front if me before, and I didn't know how to react. Before I could do anything, a pair of small yet strong arms wrapped firmly around me. To say that I was shocked was an understatement. I had never been hugged by Zoro before, and the contact made my chest tighten in a way that wasn't entirely unpleasant. I was so wrapped up in what was going on that I almost missed Zoro's words.

"It's okay, you know." His voice was a harsh whisper. He squeezed me lightly and I relaxed in his grip. "I already knew." I felt my eyes go wide and I struggled to form the words to respond.

"You...knew?" I breathed.

"Yeah." He said. "I figured it out almost immediately. You're a terrible liar." I was both hurt and comforted by his comment. I buried my face in his shirt and struggled with the torrent of pent-up feelings that were threatening to erupt from my heart. Zoro held me, both tightly and gently, almost like a guidepost for the storm inside of me, and I was grateful.

"How long?" Zoro asked. I was confused by his question and pulled away from the hug to look him in the face. "How long has it been since you were allowed to cry?"

My teeth dug into my lip, drawing blood. "Two years." I whispered.

"I see." Said Zoro. "Well, it's okay. You don't have to be strong all the time. You have just as much right to cry as anyone else. Probably more so." I allowed my forehead to fall to his chest with a thump. "What I mean is, if you want to, you_ can _cry. I won't mind."

By now, broken sobs were already leaking out from between my clenched teeth. Tears pooled in my eyes and I brought my hand up to cover my mouth. Zoro's hands on my shoulders kept me steady, and as I raised my head to look at him, tiny streams of water began to run down my face, hot and yet freezing cold against my pale skin. Zoro let some of his tears fall in response to my own, and he let me bury my face into his shirt and simply sob.

I cried for the first time in what felt like forever.

It felt so good to cry. All of it. My fears, frustrations, and sadness, came pouring out of me like a fountain that never seemed to stop. I cried bitterly for the unfairness of life, for the loss of my hopes and dreams. I cried for my family, who wanted me to live when I myself had given up on life. I cried for Zoro, who was probably in just as much pain as I was.

(I am a single iceberg afloat in a warm sea)

(a sea of tears)

Through it all, Zoro held me. He didn't say anything, just let me sob my heart out into his chest, not caring that there were tears and snot dripping all down his front. And I was grateful.

When at last I stopped crying, I wiped my eyes and felt Zoro withdraw his arms. He looked at me and smirked. "You look like hell." He said and ruffled my hair.

"I feel like hell." I croaked. I found myself chuckling at how silly my voice sounded projected from my now raw throat. The chucking soon became hearty giggling, and then erupted into maniacal laughter which jostled my ribs and made me clutch my sides in pain. I heard Zoro crack up beside me, and soon the two of us were rolling on the ground laughing our asses off for no particular reason.

Eventually, we calmed down enough to the point where we could breathe. We took in greedy mouthfuls of the fresh air, wide, almost crazy grins plastered on our faces. I let myself fall onto the deck and stared up at the sky. Zoro did the same, and for the next hour, we sat in comfortable silence simply enjoying each other's company.

"Zoro?" I eventually said.

"What?" He replied.

"Thank you."

"Don't mention it."

I felt my heart melt at his words. His voice was strong and full of the confidence and hope that I so desperately lacked. I needed that voice. Just like I needed Zoro. The nagging fear that he would abandon me because he discovered my illness was slowly fading, replaced by a strong rope of faith that connected Zoro and I. I could tell that whatever happened next in either of our lives, it would be faced with both of us together, as friends.

And I was happy.

Right then, I thought that my life was complete. I had friends and family that loved me and cared about my happiness, and I had what little life was still in me left to enjoy. I thought that nothing could possibly make my life any better. I was very wrong.

And then I met a girl named Nami.

OMG! Chapter is finally done! Sorry for the wait guys! I hop you enjoy and look forward to the next one which will be out as soon as possible! Thanks a bunch!


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 4:**

On one of the few days that Zoro did not visit me, something amazing happened.

An angel fell from the sky.

Well, it wasn't really from the sky, more like from the lowest branch of the oak tree in my backyard. And she wasn't an angel, as I was soon to learn. I remember that I was sitting on the grass, leaning up against the trunk of the large tree with my eyes closed. The air was hot and I wore short sleeves and pants. It was one of the few days where I didn't feel cold at all, even a little overheated, and I was enjoying it fully. That is, until a squealing mass of wild orange hair decided to crash down on top of my head, effectively knocking me out.

I was out for a good ten seconds before the blackness finally faded from my sight, revealing a small orange-haired girl lying face-first on the grass by my feet. She wasn't moving, and as I adjusted myself to get a better look at her, I saw the small rise and fall of her breathing that assured me she was only stunned and not dead.

I gazed at her in wonder. In all my life, I'd never really seen a girl up close, much less one my own age, and I was immensely curious. I gently flipped her onto her back, cradling her injured head in my arms and lifting her up so she was leaning on my shoulder. She wore a short white dress, wrinkled from the fall, and light brown shoes on her tiny feet. Her hair was short and was pinned back by a pair of light blue hairpins, and her face was round and creamy white.

The first thing I thought was, "She's beautiful." And she was. Very much so. She looked to be about my age, maybe a little older, and her skin was warm beneath my fingers.

I noticed the large, bloody gash in her temple, obscured by her bangs. For a second, I panicked. What if she had brain damage from the fall? Or what if she hit her head so hard that she lost all her memories?

Not knowing what to do, I scooped the girl, who was surprisingly light, up into my arms and carried her inside.

I carried her into the kitchen where I knew there'd be band aids and antiseptic. I set her on the small rectangular table in the corner, using a pillow I'd swiped from the couch to cushion her head. I rushed over to the medicine cabinet, full of the brightly colored pills and medical supplies that kept me alive, and from it removed a small tube of aspirin, a roll of gauze, and a bottle of hydrogen peroxide. I then proceeded to gently swab the wound on the girl's temple with the disinfectant, and then wrap the whole thing securely with the gauze.

Her eyelids fluttered. The tip of her nose scrunched like she was smelling something bad, and I leaned in closely. Her eyes opened slowly, dully, like she was waking up from a long sleep. I saw how brown her eyes were and my heart clenched, a slight blush forming in my cheeks.

The girl stared up at the ceiling for a few long seconds, before adjusting her gaze to my face. I grinned widely.

The girl gasped suddenly and sat up, causing her to grab her head as a wave of dizziness took her. I chuckled and put a hand on her shoulder.

"Careful," I said. "You fell from really high up, don't move so quickly."

The girl's eyes filled with confusion and she looked around the kitchen, trying to get her bearings. "Don't worry," I said. "You're in my house." I walked over to the sink and filled a glass half full of water, unscrewing the lid of the tube of aspirin and removing a single white pill. I walked back to the girl, who had lain back against the table clutching the bandages around her head, and offered her the glass and the pill.

"Here," I said with a smile. "For your head."

The girl stared at the items in my hands warily. I grinned and held the towards her, encouraging her to take them. Slowly, she reached out and gripped the glass, bringing it up to her lips and taking a few careful sips. She held out her palm and I dropped the little white pill into it. She swallowed it, and proceeded to run her fingers over my bandage work like she was inspecting it for quality. I was happy that she had let me help her, and as she settled back against the pillow, I laughed lightly.

"My name's Luffy," I said cheerfully. "What's yours?" The girl stated at me with a puzzled expression on her face, one eyebrow rising high above the other.

"Nami." She said in a voice that was barely above a whisper.

My smile grew even wider and I folded my arms behind my head. "You fell from the sky, Nami." I said merrily. "You landed on me and I thought I was gonna die!"

Nami looked surprised, and then puffed out her lips like she was displeased with something. She turned away from me and I frowned. "What's wrong?" I asked. "Does your head still hurt? I have more aspirin if you want."

Silence.

"Are you uncomfortable? There're blankets in my room if you're cold." The girl called Nami remained silent and my frown deepened. I was about to ask her why she wasn't talking to me when I heard Nami mutter something under her breath.

"What?" I said.

Nami muttered again, this time more loudly, but her words were still too quiet and I missed most of them.

"I can't hear you, what'd you say?"

Nami sat up suddenly. "I said I'm NOT THAT HEAVY YOU IDIOT!" She screamed, directly into my ear. I cried out in pain and covered both of my ears with my hands. I was startled by her sudden outburst and drew back from the table in fear. Nami glared at me, crossing her arms and clicking her tongue in annoyance. "Geez, I didn't fall from that high up, so quit acting like I almost crushed you, okay? It's pissing me off."

I suddenly realized. This was the mystical realm of female emotions that Grandpa had warned me about. It was fraught with dangers, such as 'irrational sensitivity' and 'menstruation frustration', whatever the hell that meant, and required the utmost care and delicacy when being dealt with. I cleared my throat and faced Nami directly.

"I see." I said, trying to keep my voice as calm as possible. "I apologize for whatever I said. Please do not kill me." I bowed as low as I could while still standing, praying that it would be enough. I had heard horror stories of women going on bloodthirsty rampages in the wake of their anger, and I did NOT want to fall victim. To my surprise, I heard laughter. I looked up, and saw Nami smiling widely, giggles spilling from her mouth in breathy gasps. She held her sides and I stared, dumbfounded. Had I done something wrong?

"What are you doing?" Nami laughed.

"Apologizing." I said.

"Okay...?"

"I made you angry... and Grandpa says that making a girl angry is the worst thing you can do."

Nami smiled, but then winced as she remembered the wound on her head. I looked at her sympathetically. "Are you in pain?" I asked.

"Not really," she said. "My head's just a little sore." She dangled her legs over the side of the table and I saw that they were covered in scrapes and bruises. I wondered how she had gotten so hurt, but pushed it to the back of my mind when I saw a patch of red seep through her head wrap.

"Here," I said, moving over to her side. I slowly undid the wrappings and Nami let me. I inspected the wound and, upon deeming it clean, put a fresh layer of bandages upon it. Nami was silent. When I was done, I turned to face her, only to find a slight blush on her cheeks. Worried that she had a fever, I pressed my palm against her forehead. She jerked away and glared at me.

"Don't touch me without permission." She hissed.

"Okay." I replied.

And I didn't.

Soon, Nami was napping on the table, completely forgetting about my presence. I could tell she was really tired so I left the room. While she slept, I thought about her. She was interesting, maybe even a little scary, and a girl. I had never met anyone like her. My heart raced in a familiar fashion and Zoro's face came to mind. She made me feel warm, much like he did, and I liked it.

I then decided what I wanted to do.

I wanted to make Nami my friend.

**Chapter 4! Enjoy! PLEASE review and tell me how I'm doing! I really appreciate it! **


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 5: Nami's Promise**

When Nami awoke, I was leaning over her. A few minutes before, I had walked back into the kitchen to see whether or not she was awake, and to my dismay, she wasn't. I sighed, puffing out my lip in disappointment. I really wanted to ask Nami to be my friend, but I couldn't do that if she was still sleeping, so I resigned myself to waiting. She had been sleeping peacefully on my kitchen table for well over three hours and, fearing that she may be getting cold, I slipped one of the blankets from my bed over her small form. Upon doing so, I got a clear look at Nami's slumbering face. Her eyelids twitched slightly which suggested that she was dreaming, and I wondered what kinds of dreams she was having. I stared thoughtfully at her face for a few minutes, just watching her sleep. I smiled softly, but then frowned when I discovered a small purple bruise on the girl's right cheek. It wasn't very dark, which suggested that it was fresh, maybe even from that day.

Something about it made me shudder and clench my fists. The angle of the bruise was too shallow to have been caused by the fall from my tree, and the pattern of it was eerily familiar. I absentmindedly traced my own jaw-line where I had once sported countless bruises of the same size and shape as Nami's.

The shape of a well-aimed punch.

I bit my lip and thought of whoever had hit her venomously. If I ever got the chance, I swore I would make them pay. The welt looked like it would be painful so I decided to so something about it. I was putting a large band-aid over it, when slowly Nami's deep chocolate eyes began to drift open. At the sight of her waking up, I felt my heart shudder in my chest, but instead of worrying me, it felt good.

Warm.

I smiled and took a step back, allowing Nami to sit up. She rubbed her eyes with the palm of her hand and blinked slowly. Her head swiveled from side to side and I saw realization flash across her face as she remembered where she was. I grinned and folded my arms behind my head.

"Hey, Nami!" I said. She looked at me and, upon recognizing me, smiled slightly.

"Hey yourself... umm... Luffy?" She said, tilting her head slightly to the side.

(she remembers my name)

"Yup!" I said, excitedly stepping foreword and leaning against the table. "You were asleep for a long time, Nami. I was getting worried that you wouldn't wake up!" She blushed and I laughed.

"Sorry to trouble you." She said quietly. Her fingers curled tightly around the edges of the blanket I had put over her and she looked down at it like she was seeing it for the first time. I giggled and leaned back.

Quickly, I gathered up the supplies I had placed on the table to treat Nami's wounds and carried them back to the medicine cabinet. As I put them away, I selected a particular orange tube with the words _Luffy, Monkey D. _printed on the white label, and from it slid three red pills into my palm. I popped them quickly into my mouth and swallowed, grimacing at the bitter flavor. I suddenly felt eyes burning holes on my back. Turning back around I saw that Nami was staring at me intently, almost as if she were studying me for signs of something. I prayed that she hadn't noticed me taking the medicine and plastered a grin on my face. Walking back over to where she sat, I plucked a tangerine from the fruit basket on the kitchen counter and held it out to her. "Here," I said, smiling widely. "You must be hungry. I'm not allowed to eat much, so all I've got is fruit and milk. I hope that's okay." She took the fruit hesitantly, brining it up to her nose to sniff it before carefully moving to peel back the rind. She muttered a small "thank you" and I thought I saw a faint tinge of red on her cheeks.

I watched her hands move with utter fascination. They were small, and yet possessed a grace and skill about them that made me wonder if she was some kind of artist. The way she peeled the tangerine left the thin rind in a single long thread, unbroken from both sides. "Wow!" I exclaimed once she had finished. "That's so cool! How'd you do that without ripping it? I can't even get _into _one of those things without completely squishing it." Nami looked embarrassed at the praise and turned her face away from mine, cheeks flaming.

"I-Its nothing special." She said indignantly. I laughed at her tiny frown and picked up the tangerine peel with two fingers.

"But look, it's so pretty!" I said. "Who taught you to peel tangerines like that? Or are you just skilled?"

For a moment, Nami looked thoughtful. When she answered, her voice was soft and laced with... sadness?

"My mom." She said simply. I waited for her to say more, but she just pulled apart the fruit in her hands and stuck a slice into her mouth. I didn't pressure her, and just watched her slowly pick apart and eat the tangerine. The color of the peel matched the color of her hair and I smiled. As soon as Nami was finished, she swung her legs over the side of the table and gently pushed herself off. When she landed, she stumbled and I stuck out my arm to steady her, causing her cheeks to once again flare to life. My own heart beat a little faster at her touch and I reveled in the warmth. She grasped my shoulder firmly, rocking back on her heels a couple of times to test her ability to stand. Once she was confident that she could move on her own, she let go.

"Well then," she said as soon as she had both feet planted firmly on the ground. "I guess I'll be going then. Thanks for helping me out. I'll pay you back sometime." My heart fell into my stomach at her words, and before she could step around me, I blocked her path with my arms.

"You're leaving already?" I said in dismay.

"Yup." She said, smoothing down her rumbled white dress with her hands before placing them daintily on her hips. "I've overstayed my welcome and I've got places I need to be." She glared at me lightly. "So move."

I shook my head. "Don't want to." I said flatly.

Nami let out an exasperated sigh and rubbed her probably throbbing temple. "Look, Luffy," she said, impatience creeping into her voice. "I have somewhere that I really need to be right now, so I can't stay. Please try to understand."

"No." I said again. "You only just got here a little while ago, and its boring all by myself. Just stay here for a little bit longer, we don't even know if you've got brain damage from that fall!" I waved my arms at the last part.

I could tell that Nami was getting really annoyed with me. "I do NOT have brain damage!" She spat. "_And, _I do not have time to sit around here and entertain you. I'm grateful to you for taking care of me, but now I have to leave. I've already been gone too long, and who knows what that bastard will do to me if I don't go home RIGHT NOW!" Her hands suddenly flew up to her mouth, indicating that she'd said too much. Her eyes flashed, portraying emotions too quickly for me to register.

"Bastard?" I said, tilting my head to the side in confusion. I wasn't sure what she meant by that, until I remembered the bruise on her cheek. I felt my blood boil a little and I clenched my fist. _Bastard. _I thought. _That must be the guy who... _If that was where Nami was going back to, it made me want her to stay even more. "Oh." I muttered, almost to myself.

Nami turned away from me, shoulders hunched. "Anyways," she started, her voice quivering slightly, from fear or from embarrassment or both. "I've got to get back. Now let me pass."

"No." I said.

I saw a vein pulse on Nami's temple and she whirled around in a flurry of white cloth and orange hair, finger jabbing into my chest. She was angry now. "LOOK-" she began, but didn't get to finish because I wrapped her in a bone-crushing hug. She stiffened and fell silent, like she couldn't fully comprehend what was happening. I pressed my nose into her hair and inhaled. It smelled nice, like tangerines. Soon though, Nami recovered enough to try and push me away. My grip was firm, and as she struggled, the sleeve of her dress was pushed up so that her entire shoulder was exposed. I gaped at what I saw.

There were several long, red lines running criss-cross over the pale skin of her shoulder, enough that the short sleeve of her dress barely covered them all.

I knew what they were immediately.

(one more line makes two)

Nami froze in my arms, her eyes glued to my face and the fact that my gaze was focused on something she clearly didn't feel like sharing. She shoved me roughly, causing me to release her, and pulled the sleeve down over her shoulder once more. She stood a few steps away from me, glaring at me like a wounded animal. I kept my face void of any emotion, but inside, I felt the churning mass of sadness, denial, and confusion burn holes in my stomach.

(was it bad?)

(enough. enough. enough)

Nami bit her lip, her anger slowly fading away to a cracked exterior which betrayed the emotions she was feeling at that exact moment.

Fear.

Hatred.

Sorrow.

"Let me go." She said in a strangled whisper.

I remained where I stood, simply looking at her with the same blank expression. After some time passed, neither of us moving an inch or saying anything to one another, I inhaled deeply.

"Why?" I asked.

Nami flinched, breaking eye contact and staring almost despondently at the floor. "Why do you care?" she whispered.

"Because I want you to be my friend."

Nami's eyes went wide and immediately her stare was back on my face. "What...?" she said, the word dying on her lips.

"Be my friend, Nami." I said, this time louder and more directly. "I like you. From the first moment I saw you, I liked you. Your smiles, and even your anger. I like it all. It gets really lonely here, all by myself in this big house, and today you helped take some of that loneliness away. So be my friend, Nami. I'll help you, too." I flashed her one of my trademark smiles and took a step forward. "I promise to help you. That's what friends do."

For a long time, Nami was still. It was like she had turned to stone where she stood, and was now incapable of any form of movement. The only thing that proved she was even aware of her environment was the slight tremble in her shoulders, and the shocked expression on her face.

I waited.

I held out my hand.

Eventually, Nami spoke.

"But...why?" she said, her voice shaking. "Event though we only met today... why would you still...?"

"I already told you." I said. "I like you."

"But," she said. "I'm not good enough... to have friends."

"I'll be the judge of that."

"You don't understand." she shook her head like she was trying to figure out a way to convey her thoughts to me without breaking. "You have no idea what's been going on in my life these last few years... and still...?"

"Yup. I've got know idea."

There was a long pause.

"... You'd still be my friend?" she sounded awestruck, and for the first time since I met her, hopeful. "You'd still promise... to be with me?"

"Yes." I nodded firmly, my hand still outstretched to her. "I promise."

Tears threatened at the corners of Nami's eyes, and she didn't even try to fight them as they spilled freely down her cheeks. She brought her hand up to her mouth to stifle harsh sobs that were beginning to rip from her throat, and I decided to make my move. I gently removed the straw-hat from my head and placed it on Nami's. She looked up at me and her crying intensified. "Luffy..." she said, tears choking her voice.

"I promise." I said again. Slowly, Nami nodded.

(there is another, trapped in ice.)

(and we see each other and wave, the sea of tears bringing our vessels close enough for us to reach out and touch.)

(and she melts.)

(and so do I.)

**Alright! At last Chapter 5! I had a really terrible case of writer's block this last week so, I'm terribly sorry for the slow update. This chapter means a lot to me, so enjoy! Make sure to review and tell me how I'm doing! **


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 6: Nami Stays **

Nami ended up staying with me until the sky began to get dark. She did not return home to whatever horrors were waiting for her, and I was glad.

We sat on the floor of my room with a single plate piled high with tangerine peels between us, watching through my slightly opened window as the stars began to flicker into existence in the night sky. Nami hadn't spoken a word since our encounter in the kitchen, and I understood. She simply wanted the silence to be her words for a little while, to take in the situation she now found herself in and analyze how to deal with it. She held onto me and cried for a long time after I'd made my promise to her, and the skin below her eyes was red and puffy. I'd led her up to my room, taking the fruit bowl with me because I was also getting hungry, and from then on we remained as two solitary entities, each slowly growing accustomed to the presence of the other. And I was happy because it meant that Nami was accepting me as her friend.

If there was one thing I needed, it was friends. I was still on my own a lot of the time, and it still hurt far worse than any fit of coughing or intense pain I'd felt. I absolutely hated being alone. Sure, Zoro was my best friend, and whenever he was around, the world was brighter and full of hope, but he was also my _only _friend. Ace and Grandpa had begun to isolate themselves from me these past few weeks, whether it was from the strain of taking care of me or the desire to just _forget _the fact that I was dying I didn't know. Nami being here was actually the first _real _contact I'd had in days. Whenever Grandpa or Ace came around me now, they were always distant, almost like they were eager to get away from me. Ace hadn't told me a single story in almost two months.

I heard her yawn and I looked over. Nami's eyes were drooping heavily, and I could tell that she was exhausted, both physically and emotionally. I glanced over at the clock by my bed and saw that it was almost ten o-clock at night. Internally I winced. Of course she would be tired, she'd been here for almost seven hours! I stood up slowly and Nami looked up. I met her eyes and we both smiled.

"Man, it's getting late," I said, stretching. "I guess we should figure out where you're gonna sleep."

Nami frowned and looked confused. "Sleep?" She asked, tilting her head. "Who said I was sleeping here?"

"I did." I said firmly. "It's too late for you to go home and there's someone I want you to meet tomorrow."

Nami stood and faced me with her hands on her hips. "I can always come back, I dunno, _tomorrow_ dumbass." I liked the way that Nami always said exactly what was on her mind.

"Nope." I said again. "You're staying here. Even if I have to tie you up and shove you in my closet, you're staying here." She blushed at my last statement and crossed her arms. I could tell by the way she bit her lip that she wanted to protest, but at the same time wanted nothing more than to stay. I laughed at her face and went over to my closet, taking out the spare futon and laying it out gently by my bed. "I'll sleep here and you can take my bed."

Nami raised an eyebrow. "When did I say I wanted the bed?" she asked.

"I could tell." I said. "That, and Grandpa told me that girls like it when guys let them have things their way." (whatever the hell that means). Nami's blush deepened and she stared at the floor.

I smoothed out the futon and put the blanket and pillow in their proper places. "There," I said, a satisfied smile on my face. "Looks good. Now all you need are some pajamas and a toothbrush." I turned to Nami and she raised her hands quickly.

"I'm fine in what I'm wearing," she said quickly. "I won't be staying here for very long so don't worry about it." I laughed at her embarrassment and stood, Nami clutching the front of her dress tightly. She puffed out her cheek in annoyance, muttering something along the lines of "not funny" under her breath. I was about to say something, when suddenly I heard a sound that made my heart stop.

The sound of the front door opening.

_Shit._

* * *

Already, I could hear Ace and Grandpa's voices echoing up the stairs. I had completely forgotten about their existence up to this point.

I stiffened, nervous sweat beading on my arms and face at the thought of my over-protective family discovering an uninvited guest in my room. Nami must have heard the disturbance downstairs because she grew uncharacteristically still as well. Grandpa wouldn't be happy to find Nami here. It would mean that I'd done the unthinkable and ventured outside, which, in his eyes, was the surest way for my disease to catch up to me and kill me. The doctors had told my family and I time and again how dangerous it was for someone with my condition to do anything even _remotely _strenuous, including walking, running, hell even getting out of bed to get something for myself. Both he and Ace would be furious. They might even cry, and I couldn't handle that. I had to figure out a way to prevent them from seeing Nami, yet still enable her to stay here like I promised.

I heard Ace say something loudly to Grandpa, which was followed by the old man's gruff response, and then the sounds of medium-sized footfalls ascending the staircase. Right up to my room. Where Nami and I were still standing frozen wondering what the hell to do.

Quickly, I grabbed Nami's shoulder and pushed her towards my open closet. It was our only chance of preventing Ace from seeing her. At first, she struggled, gasping loudly at the sudden movement only to have my hand plastered over her mouth. "Quiet," I whispered close to her ear. "My brother will here you and then we're screwed. Just hide in my closet for a bit, and after they leave, you can come out." Nami nodded slowly and I released her from my grip. She had just slid shut the closet door and I had just quickly climbed into my bed when my bedroom door swung open, revealing a very worn-out looking older brother with a weak smile painted on his face.

"Hey, Luffy," he said, entering the room and closing the door behind him. "How're you feeling?"

I smiled widely at my brother. Despite everything, I was happy to see him. "Hi, Ace!" I said cheerfully. "You and Gramps sure came home late tonight. I feel great! Just a little tired."

Ace smiled and ruffled my hair with his bandaged hand. "That's good to hear," he said warmly. "I was getting worried. The old fart and I stayed later at the dojo than we'd originally planned. Sorry to leave you for so long."

I grinned, trying to keep any hints of loneliness out of my gaze. "Don't worry about it," I said, keeping my voice as light as possible. "Nothing really happened today anyway. I took my medicine on time like I was supposed to, and other than feeling tired, I was fine." My hand drifted up to my chest without my knowledge and I thought about the incident with Zoro. I hadn't told Ace or Grandpa about it because I was afraid that if they knew, it would only make them worry. Also, I was afraid that if they found out about my secret get-togethers with Zoro, they might forbid me from being friends with him for fear that the excess interaction might aggravate my condition.

Ace sighed and pinched my cheek lightly. "I see." He said, looking down at my hand on my chest. He was quiet for a moment before he reached over and took my small hand in his own, gently prying it off my shirt and flipping it over so that the wrist was exposed. He did this every night before going to bed, almost to reassure himself that I was still fully alive, and that I hadn't done anything to infringe upon that fact. The two scars on my wrist were silvery in the low light, and for a moment, I felt ashamed. When I had first marked myself, it had been as a reminder that my days were limited. I hadn't known at the time that it would make my family worry for my life even more. Ace eventually released my hand and I let it drop to the comforter. I didn't look up to meet his eyes, but I could still feel his gaze on me. For a long time, neither of us said anything, and after a while, Ace muttered a low "goodnight" before slipping quietly out the door. It was always like this between us now. Ace says one thing, I say something else, and then the gravity of the sickness pulls us in and kills whatever good mood or happiness might transpire around us. It made me sad, but I pushed it down as I thought of Nami who was still trapped in my closet.

"It's okay," I called softly. "You can come out now. Grandpa won't be coming in here because he knows I need my sleep." The closet door slid open to reveal a slightly red-faced Nami. I hopped out of the bed and walked over to her. I noticed that she was clutching her shoulder rather tightly, and I wondered if something was wrong. Upon closer inspection, I saw tear tracks running down her cheeks and that bothered me. "You alright, Nami?" I asked.

"...I'm sorry." She said, taking me by surprise.

"For what?" I asked, confused.

"For causing you so much trouble." She said. "You had to lie to your brother for me, and... and I think I heard some things that I shouldn't have. That were private, I mean." She looked down in embarrassment, wiping her eyes with the back of her hand as she did, and I smiled softly. Her honesty made my insides glow, which was a welcome relief to the raw sadness and guilt I had just been feeling. I stepped forward and pulled the girl into a hug. She didn't stiffen like I was expecting her to, and surprisingly wrapped her own arms around my middle so that we were both holding each other.

"It's alright." I whispered into her hair. "It's worth it."

"Worth what?" she asked.

"Having you for a friend."

"Oh."

The two of us stood like that for sometime, our embrace only broken by a muffled yawn that we both shared. I laughed lightly and pulled away. "You're really tired, aren't you?" I chuckled.

"You too, idiot." Nami replied with a hint of annoyance.

"We should go to sleep." I said. "The bed's all yours." Nami remained standing in the middle of the room for some time, glancing awkwardly at the bed like she was wondering what to do next. "It's okay. I don't mind." I saw Nami nod. She made her way slowly over to the bed before peeling back the covers and climbing in. She snuggled into the comforter, pressing her face deeply into my pillow before I finally heard her sigh contentedly. It wasn't another ten minutes before I heard deep even breaths coming from the mattress above me, indicating that she had fallen fast asleep. I was glad, and adjusted myself beneath my own blanket until my position was satisfying. I closed my eyes and reflected upon the events of the day; meeting Nami, making her my friend, and even letting her spend the night at my house.

It had been an odd day to say for sure. I wondered what Zoro would think when I introduced the two of them tomorrow. I hoped that he would like her as much as I did, and that the three of us could form some sort of awesome three-way friendship force of doom.

I realized that I now had _two _friends.

Two people to laugh and cry with, as well as two people who saw me as their equal, and not just the kid with the deadly disease. I was so happy that I thought my heart was going to burst. I grinned into my pillow and welcomed the darkness that silently overtook me, signaling the start of a new day, and a new chapter in my life.

Once again, I couldn't wait.

**Awwwwww! Chapter 6 is finally done! I'm so glad for all of the feedback that I've been getting from you guys. Make sure to keep commenting and tell me how I'm doing. I'll make sure to update as often as possible, because, as you see, "shit be goin' down" in the story right now. Well, until we meet again! **


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 7: Nami and Zoro**

I had already eaten breakfast and taken my morning medication by the time Nami woke up the next morning.

The sun was low on the horizon, casting golden shadows across every surface and coloring the world with its warmth. The clock read 7:00 a.m, too early for Zoro to visit, but late enough for both Grandpa and Ace to be long gone for school or work or whatever it was they did during the daytime. For s moment, I felt a pang of loneliness, but then I thought of Nami lying sound asleep in my bed upstairs and it went away. I wasn't alone now.

I yawned, stretching my stiff muscles, and then winced as a sharp pain shot up through my ribs and into my lungs. I coughed into my hands and fell to my knees. I was still in the kitchen, having just cleared my cereal bowl, and was now leaning up against the cabinet beneath the sink with my arms wrapped around my middle. The fit lasted a good five minutes, each hack bringing up new waves of spit and hot liquid into my hand. I finished at last and wiped my mouth. I saw that there was a small puddle of bright red blood on the floor in front of me, oozing its way between the tiles. I sighed, shivering. Summer was fast approaching, and already the days had lengthened to where I had to stay up late to see the stars and warm air seeped into every crevice, but I was always cold. I wore a coat whenever Zoro and I played outside, and slept underneath a heated blanket most nights.

Last night had been particularly hard. I had stayed awake for a long time, shaking from the incessant chill that swam through my body. It was cold, and lonely, like most nights were these days, soothed only by the melodic sound of Nami's even breathing coming from the bed above me.

I pushed myself off the floor and searched around for something to clean up my mess with. My hand found a slightly damp dishtowel, and for the next half hour I crouched on my hands and knees scrubbing at the red stain, making sure to get all of it off. I cleaned until nothing remained of the evidence of my sickness, and when it was over I felt relieved.

I sat up and rinsed the towel in the sink, ringing it out so that a stream of light pink water was forced out of it. Once that was done, I headed for the stairs and made my way to my room. I expected Nami to still be sleeping, but was surprised to find her standing in front of my window, staring out at the sun rising slowly over the hills. She turned when she heard me enter and flashed me a tired smile. I smiled back and walked over to her.

"Morning, Nami!" I said cheerily. "Did you sleep well?"

"Yeah," she said, tucking a strand of her slightly disheveled hair behind her ear. "I slept great. That bed of yours is really comfy." I grinned, happy that she was feeling better today. I heard Nami's stomach growl and a light blush covered her cheeks. This made me laugh.

I reached out and took her hand, pulling her with me towards the door. "C'mon," I said. "We'll get you something to eat in the kitchen." I saw her nod slightly out of the corner of my eye and warmth spread through my flesh. It sent goose-bumps up my spine and made me sigh happily. I led Nami down the stairs and into the kitchen. Warily, I eyed the spot by the sink where I'd cleaned up my blood, inspecting it silently for any remaining traces of red. When I found none, I breathed a sigh of relief. I had a feeling that Nami had a vague understanding of my illness, judging by her reaction to my and Ace's conversation last night, but right now I still wished to spare her from any gory details. I guess I was still a little scared of how people would react to finding out that I was dying.

Zoro had taken the news like a pro, and I loved him for it. He didn't judge or overreact, he simply treated me the same way he had always treated me, not changing anything. In many ways, I was closer to Zoro than to my actual brother, the fact that he saw me as a person and not an expiration date enforcing this feeling even more so. I couldn't wait for him to meet Nami, the second person I'd invited into my messed up little world, so that he could also gain another friend. I knew that Zoro would never admit it, but deep down, I think that he was as lonely as me sometimes.

Nami sat down at the kitchen table and I got her a bowl from the cupboard. She didn't look nearly as uncomfortable in my house as yesterday, and this made me grin internally. I set the bowl in front of her and got cereal and milk for her to use. She didn't hesitate to serve herself and polished off a whole bowl before I could even blink. She must've been really hungry. She wiped her mouth on the back of her hand and smiled at me. "Thanks," she said, leaning back in her chair. "I was starving. You got anything else?"

"No," I said, annoyed. "Gramps still hasn't gone shopping, and I'm almost out of food! What kind of guardian lets their kid go hungry?" I sat in the chair across from Nami and let my head fall to the table with a _thump. _I hated it when Grandpa put things off until the last minute, like when I had a splinter stuck in my foot and he waited until it got infected to rip it out.

Yikes.

Nami looked at me quizzically. "Who forgets to buy food?" she asked, crossing her arms. "Or, a better question, how much do you eat?"

"Not enough." I replied, my voice muffled by the table.

"How many helpings of cereal did you have this morning alone?"

"Three, but that's not the point." I whined. "The point is that Grandpa and Ace don't give me enough to eat! They keep spouting all this 'dietary regulation' crap, like, if I have one two many pieces of meat on any given day, I'm going to just up and explode! I want all the meat!" I cried the last part and I heard Nami laugh from across the table. I liked hearing her laugh. It was a joyous reprieve from the harsh sobs and hopeless looks I'd witnesses yesterday. I looked up at her and saw a wide, genuine smile spread across her face. I smiled back at her.

I checked the clock again. It was only a little after eight o'clock, which meant that it would be at least another hour before Zoro would normally visit. I sighed in frustration. What were Nami and I supposed to do for an hour until he got here? I thought about it for a second, and then snapped, an idea coming to me. Nami raised an eyebrow at me. Something in her look told me that my mischievous grin was making her uncomfortable.

"Hey, Nami," I said, giving her a creepy smile. "Want to go on an adventure with me?"

* * *

For the next hour, Nami and I constructed an enormous pillow fort in my living room. It consisted of every pillow in the house, including those from the guest room and Ace and Grandpa's bedrooms, and was large enough to fit both Nami and I, plus Zoro, inside. As soon as I had suggested the idea of building a fort, Nami's eyes lit up in excitement. She helped me gather all our materials and then carefully laid out a blueprint of how the entire structure was going to work out. She had me do most of the actual pillow-placing, offering me advice and direction, and by the time we were finished, exactly one hour later, the most magnificent monument I had ever seen loomed in our sight. It was taller than me, and was cloaked in sheets and blankets galore, making it look like some kind of white palace. To say that I was pleased with our work was an understatement. I jumped in the air and yelled, calling Nami a genius and saying how awesome Zoro was going to think this was.

At the mention of Zoro, Nami's ears perked up. "Who's Zoro?" she asked.

"He's the guy I want you to meet," I said, still staring at our masterpiece. "Other than you, he's my only friend in the whole world. It's only right that my two friends know who each other are." I said the last part like it was the most obvious thing in the world, which made Nami scowl. Suddenly though, a look of surprise cam across her face.

"Your only other friend?" she said in confusion. "Does that mean that... Luffy, are you always alone like this?" She gestured to the room we were standing in when she said "this", so I could only assume that she meant me staying all by myself in the house all day.

"Yup." I tried not to sound bitter, but failed as betrayed by a concerned look on Nami's face. She stepped closer to me and put her hand on my arm.

"... I see," she said slowly. "I'm sorry."

"It's okay," I said cheerfully. "I'm not lonely. I've got Zoro, and now I've got you, right?" Nami's grip on my arm tightened and she looked into my eyes, her own brown orbs filled with conviction.

"Of course," She said firmly. "You've got me and... Zori?"

"Zoro."

"Right. Zoro. Got it."

We stood in semi-awkward silence for a moment, and just when I was about to say something else, there came a sharp knock on the front door. My heart instantly swelled, a wide grin breaking out on my face. There was only one person who would visit my house at this hour, or at all, and that person was my best friend in the whole wide world.

Roronoa Zoro.

I ran to the front door instantly, leaving Nami in a confused daze in the living room. I almost tripped running over the rug in the main hallway, but caught myself and carried on. My socks slid dangerously on the bare wood, and I slammed into the wall on the opposite end of the hall before landing in a heap in front of the door, but at that moment, I didn't care. I stood up quickly and flung open the front door so fast a reverse breeze formed behind me, ruffling my hair. In front of me stood Zoro. His green hair as untidy as always, the same smirk plastered on his lips as every time I greeted him. I was so happy to see him that all I wanted to do was rush him and give him the biggest hug I could muster, but, upon recalling past events which resulted in several fiery smacks to the head, I thought better of it and instead took to bouncing excitedly on my heels, a huge grin splitting my face.

"Zoro!" I cried happily.

"Hey, Luffy," Zoro said, holding up his hand in greeting. "You're looking as lively as ever. Well, you gonna let me in or do I have to trample you?" I laughed and stepped back, letting Zoro walk past me and into the hallway. I shut the door and turned to him. In his hands were two small plastic bags. I couldn't tell what was in them, but knowing Zoro, it would be interesting. One time, he brought me a live tarantula that he took from one of the kids at his school. It was awesome, until it decided to pull a Houdini and magically escape from its cage. To that day, I still hadn't found it, which was both worrying and exciting.

As Zoro and I walked towards the living room, he told me all about the last three days. He said that his dad (a.k.a "the bastard") had made him go to school for the first time in months because the teachers wouldn't stop calling him, telling him to get his son to attend class, and that it was getting annoying. We both knew that Zoro's dad didn't care either way what Zoro did with his life, but when whatever his son was doing interfered with his own life, he was on him faster than you could blink. I told Zoro that it was okay, and that he shouldn't worry about me because I wasn't lonely at all (lie). I thought of Nami and our pillow fort, the excitement nearly causing my heart to beat out of my chest. Zoro and I rounded the corner, only to discover that Nami was nowhere in sight and that the makeshift doorway into our creation was slightly disturbed. I grinned silently.

Beside me, I heard a gasp. Zoro was looking up at the tower of pillows like it was the face of God, his eyes wide and his mouth slightly agape. I laughed at his expression and stood in front of my pillow-based fortress with my chest puffed out proudly.

"Woah," I heard Zoro mutter. "That. Is the most fucking awesome pillow fort I've ever seen." He set his bags down on the floor and stood with his hands on his hips, admiring my work. I was extremely pleased, a smug smirk tugging at the corners of my mouth. The only thing missing from the moment was Nami. I wondered why she had chosen to escape into the fort when I wanted her to meet Zoro so badly, but didn't question it. I simply basked in Zoro's praise, laughing proudly at his impressed gaze.

"I know, right?" I said excitedly. "We worked really hard on it!"

Zoro turned to me. "'We?'" he said, confused. "Who's 'We?'"

"Me and Nami!" I said cheerfully. "She's super smart! She designed the whole thing, but made me do most of the work." I could've sworn I heard a muffled squeak come from inside the fort, but I chose to ignore it.

Zoro raised an eyebrow at me and crossed his arms. "Who's Nami?" he asked. He sounded defensive, like he was preparing to fend off some form of attack.

I grinned. "She's my friend!" I said happily. "She's hiding now, but before, she fell from the sky! She landed on me and got hurt, so I let her stay here with me last night. I asked her to be my friend and she said yes! Yes, Zoro!" I grabbed Zoro's shoulders and shoved my smiling face into his, trying to emphasize my point as best I could. Zoro looked at me like I was crazy, a look I was not unused to, and sighed. He pressed his hand up against my forehead.

"Do you have a fever or something?" he said. "'Cause you're not making any sense."

I slapped his hand away and stepped back. "I don't have a fever!" I cried indignantly. "And it's true! Nami's my friend! She's here right now!" I huffed and crossed my arms.

"Where?" Zoro said. "I don't see her. Are you sure you didn't just make her up?" It irritated me that Zoro didn't believe me.

"She's hiding in the fort." I pouted. "I don't know why though, I told her I wanted you to meet her." I turned toward the towering pillow structure and puffed out my lip. "Oi! Nami! Come out here and meet Zoro! He's my friend too!" There came a thump from within the fort, causing the pillows to shake slightly. Zoro and I waited in silence for a moment, before finally, a small orange head peeked out from under the sheet we had set up as the door. Nami was blushing furiously and looked embarrassed. She was biting her lip and looked unsure of what to do next.

"H-Hey..." she said nervously, forcing a smile. "I'm Nami... Nice to meet you." She crawled out from under the sheet and stood facing us. Zoro had a perplexed expression on his face, like he was thinking about how to react to the situation. Nami fiddled with her dress, eyes burning holes in the floor. I didn't understand why she was acting so weird. It was almost like she was _afraid _of Zoro, and she hadn't even met him!

Zoro continued to stare at Nami for a while, and then sighed, uncrossing his arms and putting his hands on his hips. "Damn, Luffy," he said, his tone almost impressed. "I guess you really weren't lying this time. Hey," he raised his hand in greeting and smiled, looking as friendly as possible. "I'm Roronoa Zoro. Nice to meet you... Nomi?"

"Nami." Nami and I said at the same time.

"Right. Nami. Got it." Zoro took a step forward, causing Nami to look up. Their eyes met, and something passed between them that I didn't understand. It was a look of neither animosity, nor understanding. After a few moments, Zoro leaned back , a satisfied smile on his face. "Alright. You pass." Both Nami and I stared at him in confusion.

"Pass what?" Nami said.

"The test." Zoro said simply. He smiled when Nami looked lost. "To be Luffy's friend. I won't let just anyone join this little group, you know. If you haven't seen already, his taste in friends is mostly limited to what he finds amusing and out of the ordinary, and I guess you fit. For some reason." He smirked and Nami looked a bit offended. I laughed loudly, clutching my stomach as tears formed in my eyes. Zoro could be so funny sometimes!

Nami's face was red again, and she glared at me with measured venom. I quieted at her look and wiped my eyes. It was then that my gaze was drawn to the two bags Zoro had brought, and a wide grin formed on my face. "Hey, Zoro," I asked. "What'd you bring this time?" I pointed to the bags and Zoro smiled mischievously. He walked over to the bags and picked one up. I saw that the contents were square, which was always a good sign. He slid a hand into the bag, and from it withdrew a tiny plastic cage. Inside was a small coiled green snake, curled up against the side of the cage as if trying to block out the sudden light it had been exposed to. My eyes went wide and I gasped. "Woah! You brought me a snake? That's so cool!"

Zoro laughed and set the cage on the couch. "He's not yours, idiot," he said. "I nicked him from my classroom yesterday after school. The dumb teacher didn't notice a thing." We both chuckled and I looked at the animal in awe. He was big enough to be able to devour small rodents, and his head was buried beneath his tail, almost as if he were annoyed at us for disturbing him. I poked my finger against the plastic, trying to get him to move, but to no avail. I heard a chuckle come form my left and I looked up. Nami was standing next to me, leaning in to get a better look at the cage with a small smile on her face. Both Zoro and I were slightly taken aback.

Weren't girls supposed to be afraid of snakes and stuff?

Nami must've felt our stares because she averted her eyes from the cage and instead looked at us. "What?" she said. "Never seen a girl who's into snakes?" I flinched, unnerved that she had practically read my mind. Zoro grinned next to me, impressed.

"Nope." He said. "You'd be the first. All the other chicks I've seen just run and hide whenever something even remotely gross is present."

Nami shrugged. "Yeah, well," she said casually. "All the girls around here are a bunch of cowards anyway. And besides, this little guy's kinda cute." Zoro looked immensely pleased with her response and laughed out loud. I joined him, and suddenly the two of us were laughing like idiots. Nami looked irritated at first, but then she cracked, and soon all three of us were shaking with laughter. It hurt, but in a good way, and I held my middle. Zoro wiped his eyes and so did Nami.

It was at that moment that we solidified our bond as friends. It wasn't much, just a couple of shared laughs over a silly little lizard, but it was enough. The scene sat heavily in my stomach, like a hot coal, and warmed me from the inside.

Once we had quieted down, I suggested that we take him outside to play with him. Nami called me an idiot, saying that if we took him outside he'd try to escape. I pouted, turning to Zoro for help. Zoro sighed at my pouty face and picked up the cage off the sofa. "Let's just go into the kitchen. I brought his food with me, you can feed him in there." I jumped and yelled happily, causing Zoro to rub his temple.

The three of us walked into the kitchen, me bouncing happily, Nami and Zoro sharing exasperated glances with each other right behind me. Zoro set the cage containing the small animal down on the kitchen counter and then headed back into the living room to get his food. When he returned, both Nami and I were staring intently at the creature with smiles on our faces. "What's his name?" I asked Zoro, never take my eyes off of the snake.

"X-Drake." said Zoro as he took a small brown paper-wrapped parcel out of the remaining bag.

"Intense." I said without looking up. Inside the cage, the snake hadn't moved at all. It was kind of disappointing, but at the same time I felt like I'd been issued a challenge. I began to poke the plastic furiously, trying to irritate the animal into movement. I was very good at that.

"Stop that," Nami said, slapping my hand. "He's probably scared of you enough as it is." I frowned and stepped back like I was told. I must've done it a little too quickly because I bumped into Zoro, sending him sprawling onto the floor. I turned, realizing my mistake, just in time to see Zoro flail and grab onto the hem of Nami's dress as he fell, effectively ripping a clean tear all the way to the bottom. Nami screamed and kicked Zoro's shoulder, backing away from him like he was some kind of beast. Zoro swore loudly, sitting up and rubbing his now sore shoulder with a pained expression.

"You jerk, what was that for-" he was interuppted by a shrill screech from Nami.

"YOU RIPPED MY DRESS!" She cried in dismay, seeing the large tear down her once pristine white dress. Zoro paled, seeing her fury, and so did I. I did not want to be Zoro right now.

Zoro cleared his throat and stood. "Um... I'm sorry Nami, I got pushed and-"

"No excuses!" Nami yelled, a red aura radiating off of her. "You destroyed my favorite dress! How are you going to repay me?" She crossed her arms and glared at Zoro.

"I'm sorry!" He cried, holding up his hands in surrender. "I'll do whatever you want to make it up to you, just calm down!" At this, something flashed across Nami's gaze that sent shivers up my spine. She huffed and uncrossed her arms, her dainty hands finding their way to her hips.

An evil grin slit Nami's face and she laughed demonically. "Anything?" she cooed. "You'll really do _anything _to repay me?"

Zoro began to sweat nervously. "Uh... yes?" he said hesitantly, taking a small step back from the evil-looking girl. "W-What do you want?"

Nami laughed softly, and I couldn't help but be amused at the scene unfolding before me. Never before had I seen Zoro look so scared. He was always the emotionless rock that kept me tethered down, and yet here he was, cowering before a little girl. I stifled a laugh and watched on. Nami pointed a finger at Zoro's chest, smiling. "Ten thousand belli." She said simply.

Zoro looked stunned. It took him a minute to process the amount, and when he did, he freaked out. "WHAT!?" He exclaimed, his mouth falling open in disbelief. "You can't be serious!"

Nami's coy smile grew wider. "Oh, but I am." She said slyly. "You said you'd do anything, right? Just pay me then thousand belli and I'll forget that this ever happened."

"There's no way I can pay that! I'm only eleven for godsake!"

"Too bad then, Zoro, because that's the only thing I'll accept. Until then, your in my debt." I had to cover my mouth to keep from laughing at Zoro's expression.

The boy's face quickly went from shock to anger, his fists clenching at his sides like he wanted to hit something. "You... you evil bitch...!" He stuttered. "There's no way that dress cost that much! No way I'm going to pay you!"

Nami turned serious. "Oh, you'll pay me. Even if I have to strap you down and hold you for ransom, you'll pay me. That's just how I work." Zoro looked flabbergasted and didn't reply for a long time. I could see a vein bulging in his temple and I couldn't hold it in anymore. I let loose the storm of laughter I'd been keeping pent up and fell to the floor, rolling around as each laugh shook my body. My two friends glared down at me like they couldn't believe I had the nerve to laugh at them.

"This is so fun!" I said between laughs, eventually settling down on my back, looking up. "This is my first time watching an argument between someone other than my Gramps and Ace! It's so cool!" At this, both Zoro and Nami quieted down. Zoro looked at me with a mixture of fondness and irritation, and Nami's eyes softened a fraction before she held out her hand for me to take. I grabbed it and let her pull me to my feet.

I looked at both of my friends standing in front of me and suddenly warmth spread through my chest. It completely wiped away all traces of the cold I'd been feeling earlier, and made me feel wonderfully _alive. _I smiled so widely my cheeks hurt, and it was reflected on the faces of Zoro and Nami. All three of us smiled at each other, and at that moment, we all understood something.

We were friends.

Irreversibly, completely, entirely.

And I wasn't going to let anybody change that. Not Ace, or Grandpa, or all the doctors in the world could take this one small happiness away from me. There was very little hope of me making any other friends anyway because I wasn't allowed out of the house, so I had to protect the ones I had, accidental though they may be. If I had people like Nami and Zoro with me, even if they were the only ones, I knew that I would be able to die with fewer regrets than if I was alone.

And then I met a boy named Ussop.

**HOLY CRAP! Long chapter! Sorry it took so long, guys, but I REALLY needed to get this out there. I hope you like what I've done, and be sure to leave reviews telling me what you think! You guys are amazing and so supportive of me, even though this is my first fic. I just want to say thank you to everyone who's supported me, and that I hope you keep reading. Thanks!**


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 8: Ussop**

Nami chose not to stay at my house again that night. She said that her clothes were ripped and that she needed to go home for certain reasons she refused to explain to me. I was worried about her, and tried to convince her not to go, but she wouldn't listen.

"I'll be fine, Luffy," she said softly. "I promise that I'll be back, so don't worry." She touched her shoulder where I knew the little red lines were and something cold squirmed around inside me. I knew that there was nothing I could do to change her mind, but that didn't alter the fact that I hated how much she disliked the place she was going home to. I pulled her into one last bone-crushing hug, making sure to put all of my emotions into it, right before I finally let her go. She turned back to me one last time before shutting the front door behind her. "See you later, Luffy." She said.

The door closed.

I was alone.

Zoro had gone home a little under an hour ago, taking X-Drake and his warmth with him. Invisible ice began to gnaw at my toes, and I looked down to find that I wasn't wearing any socks. This was strange, because I always wore socks to keep warm. I guess the warmth from my two friends was enough to get me to take them off earlier without realizing it. I shivered and rubbed my hands up and down my arms. The house itself wasn't cold so much as it was dark and empty, which made me nervous. I padded down the hallway and climbed the stairs to my room, where I promptly burrowed into my comforters and pillows and switched my heated blanket to full power, trying to get rid of the chills that wouldn't go away. I glanced at the clock.

8:30 p.m.

Ace and Grandpa would be home soon, and I was glad. Even if they didn't come to see me, just their presence in the house made it that much easier to breathe. I closed my eyes. I was suddenly too tired for words, my eyelids like weighted curtains being drawn down over my pupils. I didn't yawn at all, and was vaguely aware of my consciousness slipping away slowly, like drops of water from a melting ice cube. One nice thing about sleep was that it was never cold.

So many things had happened that day, so many fond memories now floating about in my mind. They comforted me, and as I drifted off to sleep I saw the faces of Nami and Zoro hovering above me, smiling, wishing me a goodnight.

* * *

Two days later I was in the hospital again.

In the night, I'd had a violent attack, spraying blood and bile all over my room until Ace found me twitching on the floor. I barely remember him screaming for Grandpa before I passed out. When I awoke, I once again had a needle protruding from my arm and a heart monitor blipping softly by my ear.

I was scared.

I was scared every time I had to go back to the hospital, because it meant I was one trip closer to losing my life. But this time was different. This time I had things I was leaving behind. If Nami and Zoro decided to visit me at my house, I wouldn't be there. They wouldn't know where I'd gone and would leave. Depending upon how long I was going to be in the hospital, Nami and Zoro might just stop coming all together, seeing as I wasn't there to play with them. That was what scared me the most.

I lay on my back looking up at the ceiling, counting the white panels to pass the time. Grandpa had stepped out a little earlier to talk with the doctor, and judging by his facial expression whatever had to be said wasn't good. I sighed, bored.

If there was one thing I hated about these sporadic hospital visits it was the horrible stretches of boredom I was forced to endure between treatment. Before, Ace had always been by my side, keeping me entertained and quieting my fears. Today, Ace had school, which meant that I was all alone. No brother, no grandfather, and no friends.

I bit my lip.

The oxygen tube in my nose itched terribly, and I wanted nothing more than to rip it out and run away. Each breath I took smelled like chemicals, making me gag. I glanced over at the I.V tube jutting out from my vein and winced. Just looking at it still made me queasy. The thought that the substances inside me were artificial and not my own was extremely disheartening. I returned my stare to the ceiling and resumed counting tiles.

One.

Two.

Three.

There was a click at the door. I looked up, expecting to see Grandpa or Trafal-guy standing there, only to be surprised by the shape of a tan, long-nosed face peering in at me. It was a boy, about my age, with short, curly black hair and a surprised expression.

We stared at each other for a moment, and then the boy spoke up.

"Oh, uh, sorry!" He said quickly, rubbing the back of his head in embarrassment. "I guess I've got the wrong room. Sorry for disturbing you!" He turned to go but I stopped him.

"Wait!" I cried, holding out my free hand as if to pull him back into the room. Any company was better than no company. "What's your name?" He looked surprised at my outburst, and then slowly re-entered the room, closing the door behind him. He raised an eyebrow at me inquisitively, like he wasn't sure how to respond.

"Ussop." He said. "My name is Ussop, or Great Captain Ussop, depending on what you want to call me." He smiled confidently and crossed his arms.

"I'm Luffy!" I said, grinning. "Nice to meet you, Great Captain Ussop!" At this, the boy blushed, clearly not expecting to have been called that right off the bat. This made me laugh, which in turn made him smile a little wider, and he stepped forward more so that he was at the edge of my bed. I then tried to sit up but failed miserably, the needle in my arm jiggling painfully with each movement. I grimaced, resigning myself to lying down, before I started smiling again.

Ussop noticed this, but chose to ignore it, sticking his hands in his pockets like nothing was wrong. When I saw this, immediately, a familiar warmth spread through my chest. "Nice to meet you, Luffy." He said, offering me a hand to shake. I took it and grasped it as firmly as I could, which wasn't that much. Ussop returned the grip full-force. We both smiled at each other for a moment, and then a fit of harsh coughs wracked my lungs, sending tiny flecks of blood all over the bed-spread. I let go of Ussop's hand to wipe my mouth. After that was finished, I smiled apologetically up at him. He simply stood there, a passive look on his face like he couldn't care less.

"Sorry about that," I said weakly. "I didn't get any on you, did I?" I gestured with my chin to the blood stains.

Ussop shook his head. "Don't worry about it," he said, a small smile still playing at his lips. "I'm clean. You don't look so good though. Do you want me to go get a nurse?" I was surprised by the amount of calm the boy was showing. It was like my illness didn't even have an effect on him, like he didn't even notice. Before I had time to register this, though, I found myself shaking my head in a silent 'no'. "Okay," Ussop shrugged. His hand unconsciously snaked out and grabbed mine, on autopilot for someone else. I didn't shrink back from his touch.

I looked up and met his gaze. His eyes were soft and filled with some warm emotion that I couldn't place. It wasn't pity, and it wasn't regret. It was the exact opposite of any look I'd ever been given by Ace or Grandpa. I realized that it was understanding. Somehow, this boy, Ussop, was expressing understanding for my predicament, and it touched me. I felt tears welling up behind my eyes, the pressure almost unbearable, and I had to bit my lip harshly to keep them at bay.

Ussop said something and I almost missed it.

"Are you lonely?" He repeated his question. I gawked at him, checking my face only to find that a few drops had slipped through my defense. I looked down at my chest and nodded slowly, feeling very young. I was incredibly lonely. "I see." Said Ussop softly. Without a word, he reached over to the desk by my bed and pulled out the chair beneath it, settling himself down and not once letting go of my hand. My eyes widened in disbelief. "Well then, I guess I'll keep you company for a while."

My breath caught in my throat, so many different emotions running through my mind at once that it made me dizzy. "Why...?" I whispered. "Why are you...?"

Ussop smiled and looked thoughtful. "The truth is," he started. "I was actually on my way over to visit my friend Kaya a little bit ago, but the nurses wouldn't tell me where her room was so I decided to find it myself. I really just found this room by accident." He looked sheepish and rubbed the back of his head with his free hand. "She likes it when I tell her stories. Says that it makes the pain go away..." He paused and swallowed deeply. "...But she's been in a coma for weeks now, so I guess that me being here today wouldn't have made a difference, huh?" he laughed but sounded very sad. And scared.

"I know Kaya." I said. "We get treated by the same person." Kaya was a leukemia patient whose parents had recently passed away. Both she and I had Trafal-guy as our main doctor. Ussop looked down at his hand on mine, a rueful smile on his lips. "She's nice. She gave me a paper crane one time." I said, half to myself.

"I know." Said Ussop. "I've seen you. You're here so often, it'd be impossible for me to not have." He cleared his throat, pausing. "You're really sick too, aren't you?"

I hesitated, turning my eyes to the ceiling. "...I'm dying." I said softly after a while. "And there's nothing anyone can do about it." My voice cracked and I stifled a sob that bubbled up my from my throat.

Ussop was silent, taking in my words and formulating a response. I glanced over at him and saw a muscle working in his jaw. "I thought so." He said lowly.

"Are _you _lonely?" I asked, meeting his dark eyes once again. He frowned and sucked in his lower lip. A horribly fake smile wormed its way onto his face and he laughed slightly, darkly.

"Of course not!" He said in a cheery yet strained voice. "I'm suuuuuuper strong, both mentally and physically! There's no way I'd be lonely over something like this!" He was lying. I knew because I'd been telling myself the exact same lie for over two years. It almost made me laugh at how bad of a liar this Great Captain Ussop was. I gave his hand a light squeeze and he squeezed back. Right then I understood some of the reason why he was staying with me. I waited for him to say something else, but he didn't. There was a thin film of unshed tears in his eyes, but I didn't call him on it.

He was afraid. For his friend, for himself. Maybe even for me.

I let him be afraid. There were lots of times when you couldn't feel fear, even when you wanted to, so I just let him have this one moment. Warmth was slowly spreading all through my chest, hot like blood, but soft like a tender embrace. Nami and Zoro flashed through my mind. I missed them both terribly, and once again I felt tears of my own budding behind my eyes. Ussop wiped his face, his smile entirely gone and in its place a look of confusion and uncertainty. I took a breath.

"It'll make me feel better if you tell me a story," I said. Ussop's eyes snapped to mine and he looked startled. I giggled at his expression and flashed him a wide grin. "My big brother used to tell me stories all the time to keep me from being sad. But he had to stop because... well he had to stop. You said you tell Kaya stories to help with the pain, right? Tell me one and let's see if it really works." Ussop stared at me for a pregnant second, and at last a genuine smirk dawned on his somber face. It made me happy to see him happy.

"Alright!" He said happily. "I'll tell you all of my most incredible tales! Ones with magic and adventure and far-away lands!" My eyes went wide and I grinned.

"Adventure?" I whispered excitedly.

"But of course!" Ussop cried, throwing his free hand in the air. "Now let's see... I know! We'll start with the one about Sogeking! The kind of Snipers!"

"Awesome! Tell me!"

For the next three hours, Ussop spun me a tale so elaborate and vivid it made me completely forget about the gnawing ache in my chest. I was so enthralled that I didn't speak the entire time, which was amazing because I loved to talk. I gasped when things got dramatic, and was even on the verge of tears when things became sad or romantic. It was the single most amazing story I had ever heard in my life. I wanted to hear more stories like that. And I wanted the storyteller to feel as happy telling them to me as I felt listening to them. When at last the Ballad of Sogeking had ended, Ussop was breathing heavily. He had a wide grin on his face matched only by my own, and our hands remained firmly intertwined.

We were both quiet, taking in the sudden silence broken only by the heart monitor and Ussop's laden breaths.

It was then that I knew I had to make Ussop my friend.

"Hey... Ussop?" I said after a moment.

"Yeah, Luffy?" He said.

"Be my friend."

"...Okay."

"Really?"

"Idiot, we're already friends, aren't we?" Ussop gave me a withering look that reminded me heavily of Nami.

"...You don't mind?" I half-whispered.

"Mind what?" Ussop said, confused.

"Me dying." I said simply.

"...Nope." He said.

"For real?"

"For real."

...

...

"Thanks. Captain Ussop."

**Holy Poop! It's been too long my friends! This chapter was hard. At first I had no flipping idea how I was going to introduce Ussop, and then I thought, Kaya! I hope you guys enjoy and keep leaving me your awesome reviews! They really help, and they make me feel all warm and fuzzy inside! For those of you who have questions or concerns, fear not! All shall be explained shortly. Muhahahahahaha!**


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 9: Ussop and The Pirate King**

Ussop stayed with me until he was forced out of the room by Trafal-guy and two nurses, much to both of our dismay. Before he left, he turned to me and smiled widely. "I guess I'll see you tomorrow then, Luffy." He said, giving my hand, which he had not let go of once, one final comforting squeeze.

"You'll really come tomorrow, too?" I said, the hope in my voice painfully evident. Ussop nodded and I smiled softly, satisfied. In the six and a half hours we'd spent together, the two of us had become almost instant friends. Something about us just clicked, and it wasn't at all forced or based on lies, which was new. Out of all of the friends I'd made so far, Ussop was the only one who had taken less than ten minutes to gain my trust. Despite the fact that he was a hopeless liar, and couldn't tell a good fib to save his life, there was just something proudly honest about him, like he knew who he was and who he was trying to become but was just a little confused on how to get there. He was just like me.

Ussop waved and made his way to the door, closing it with a soft click. I sighed and looked up, only to find Trafal-guy looming over me like a specter. I jumped, startled, only to wince in pain as my chest contracted. I glared. The fluffy-hat wearing doctor had an almost smug expression on his face, and a faint smile played on his lips. "Made a friend, did we, Luffy-ya?"

I felt myself redden, but couldn't contain the smile that bubbled up from within me at the word 'friend'. Trafal-guy smiled wider and picked up his clipboard. He flipped through the pages, his eyes scanning over the words and numbers so quickly that I was convinced he was part computer. I had always liked Trafal-guy for this reason, among many others. He was the one doctor that had been with me from the very beginning, treating me, helping me, offering me hope when I knew there was none. He acted tough and surely on the surface, but underneath all the lab coats and shadows, he was really a nice guy. He had been there for me more than even my family had been, both in and out of the operating room, and for that, I was grateful.

I coughed and felt a dribble of red slide down my chin. Without missing a beat, Trafal-guy took out a tissue from his pocket and wiped it away. "Thanks." I said.

"No problem." He replied without looking up from my charts. I scanned his face for any signs of what he was reading. I could usually tell by the way his eyebrows twitched. If they were flat, then I had nothing to worry about and would probably be going home in a couple of days. If they wobbled, even slightly, it meant that there was trouble on the horizon, maybe even another surgery. I watched, waiting. When his eyebrows remained where they were, I breathed a silent sigh of relief. I wanted to return to my house as soon as possible so that I could see Zoro and Nami. It had only been two days, and already I missed them so fiercely it made my heart clench painfully.

I had so many things I wanted to tell them, to _share _with them.

I wanted them to meet Ussop, and for him to regale them with his magnificent tales.

I wanted Nami to hold my hand and peel me tangerines, assuring to me that she was safe and sound.

I wanted Zoro to hit me upside the head for being stupid, complain, and then laugh loudly about it later.

I wanted my friends.

My lip trembled and I let my bangs fall into my face. I'd gone two years without letting Trafal-guy see my tears, and I wasn't about to show them to him now. I took a deep breath to calm myself, and then resumed waiting patiently for the results of my latest blood tests.

Trafal-guy eventually sighed and set the clipboard back on the table. He fixed me with his best doctor face and I prepared myself for whatever news I was about to receive. "You're okay," he said with a deep sigh. "Not great, but okay. You'll be able to leave in a few days." The grin that split my face was so wide it was painful. I pumped my fist in the air and ya-hooed loudly. "Hey, now," Trafal-guy held out a hand to calm me down. "I said you can go home, not that you're cured."

"I know," I said lightly. "But it's still good news! I hate being in this stuffy place! It makes me nauseous." I stuck out my tongue and Trafal-guy smiled, ruffling my hair.

"You're thinking about that friend of yours, aren't you?" He said slyly.

I gasped. "How could you tell? Are you psychic?!" I cried.

My face must have been very comical because Trafal-guy released a low chuckle. He flicked my forehead lightly. "No, stupid. I can practically feel the excitement oozing off of you. That boy was Kaya's friend, right? The one who visits her in the isolation ward. I see him here all the time."

I nodded and smiled. "Ussop." I said, wiggling my fingers in remembrance. "He got lost and we started talking. I like him a lot. He makes me laugh and tells these really amazing stories! He was even okay with the whole me dying thing."

"He sounds like a good friend." Trafal-guy smirked, folding his arms and looking down at me with his dark eyes. "I was worried. I thought you'd never be able to make any friends at the rate you were going, but I guess I was wrong. Good for you, Luffy-ya." His smile was real and I felt my insides glow warmly.

"Thanks, Trafal-guy," I said softly. "... For everything." The doctor reached down and ruffled my hair again.

"It's my job, kid." He murmured, almost affectionately. "Now hurry up and get some sleep. Your gramps and brother are going to be here in the morning, and you don't want to sleep through their visit, do you?"

"Okay," I said with a yawn. "G'night, Trafal-guy."

"Goodnight, Luffy-ya." And with that, he turned and left, leaving me with nothing but my thoughts and the glittering stars overhead for company.

I wasn't lonely.

* * *

In the morning, I woke up to Ace staring intently at my face. I would've freaked out, but because I was so used to this, I simply grinned and muttered a sleepy "good morning, Ace." He leaned back and smiled, somehow relieved. Behind him loomed the hulking uniformed figure of my Grandpa, also smiling.

"Morning, Luffy!" the old man said cheerily, but with a tired edge. "How're you feeling?"

"Better," I said groggily. "It doesn't hurt as much." I put my hand on my chest and rubbed tiny circles against the fabric. At this, Ace's smile faltered slightly. He placed his hand over mine and squeezed.

"That's good to hear," He said. "You scared the crap outta me. I... I was afraid you..." His voice cracked and I instantly felt waves of guilt wash over me. My brother took a breath and steeled his gaze, meeting my eyes. "I was afraid you weren't going to wake up. This time." I let familiar hollowness take control of me, and on autopilot, I grinned widely and laughed. The smile didn't reach my eyes, and each laugh burned its way out of my windpipe.

"I'm fine, Ace." I said, as lightly as possible. "It's nothing. Trafal-guy even said that I could come home in a couple of days. Isn't that great?"

Grandpa frowned slightly, averting his gaze to the floor. He tried to hide it, but his hands were shaking. I let the smile slip off my face. Something about Grandpa being scared just wasn't right, and it made me feel even guiltier. Sunlight filtered in through the window, illuminating the millions of crystalline dust flecks that drifted through the air in marigold streams. It splashed over the foot of my bed and warmed my toes, the rest of me feeling ice cold. I wanted so badly to apologize to Ace and Grandpa. Somehow, I felt that what was happening to me was my fault, and that maybe I deserved it. I wanted to say that I was sorry.

An hour went by with little conversation from either my family or me, so eventually, the two of them simply stood up and left. Ace didn't even say goodbye.

Sadness welled up inside me, and a little piece of my spirit broke. I wanted Zoro. I wanted his stoic strength and his warm shoulder to cry on. It was at times like this, when I was at the mercy of my raw emotions, that I longed for my best friend the most.

But, unfortunately, he wasn't here.

And so my tears stayed inside me.

* * *

The world brightened when a familiar long nose poked into my room from around the corner of the cracked door. Immediately, all negative emotions I'd been harboring dissipated into thin air, leaving only faint traces of regret hovering around shoulders.

I wanted to jump up and hug the boy, but my oxygen and I.V tubes still held my down to the bed like chains. I settled for yelling loudly and joyously. "Ussop! You came back!" I cried.

Ussop stepped fully into the room, a large grin on his face. He strode over to my bedside and pulled out the chair. "Hey, Luffy! You look better today!" He said merrily. "I'm glad. You looked kinda out of it when I left last night."

"Yeah," I said. "I'm feeling pretty good today. Trafal-guy even said he'll let me go home in a few days." Ussop smiled wider and chuckled.

"That's good," he said. "That way you don't have to be cooped up in this damn hospital all the time, listening to me ramble."

We both laughed, and I was surprised when it didn't devolve into a violent fit of coughing. "Don't worry, Ussop," I laughed. "I like your rambling! You tell the best stories I've ever heard in my life!" Said Great Captain blushed and rubbed under his nose.

The boy smirked. "But of course!" He said, puffing out his chest. "My stories have been honed over a great many years to be the greatest and most entertaining tales that the world has ever seen!" We laughed again, but this time there was a hint of sadness in his voice. I could tell that he was thinking about Kaya, the whole reason he told stories was to cheer her up after all, but didn't want to mention it for fear of upsetting him. He loved that girl dearly. It was obvious by the way his cheeks reddened whenever one of us said her name, and how he had to choke back tears whenever the subject of her disease was brought up. Yesterday, after he'd finished telling me one of his shorter stories, he had told me about how he met Kaya, and how she was there for him after his mother passed away when he was five.

When he had said that, I made a mental note to thank Kaya when she woke up. Anyone who was kind to my friends deserved nothing but kindness from me. Ussop leaned forward in his chair, rays of dying afternoon sun illuminating the tip of his long nose, making it glow. "So," he said slyly. "What story shall we begin with today?" I sat up as best I could and ignored the tug of the I.V line.

"Something about pirates!" I cried excitedly, reaching over to the bedside table and grabbing my treasured straw hat. I pulled it lovingly up to my chest, inhaling the comforting scent of straw and closing my eyes. "Pirates are so cool," I said, almost to myself. "They get to go wherever they want, whenever they want, without anyone telling them who they are or how they should live. If I had to choose, that'd be the life for me. Total freedom." I fingered my hospital bracelet and swallowed a sudden rush of bitterness.

"Total freedom..." Ussop echoed next to me. He sounded awestruck, and I heard him shift his weight on the chair, restlessly. We were both quiet for a moment, and then I heard Ussop snicker. "It's too bad that pirates like that don't exist. At least not anymore. But you're right. If I had the choice, I'd go out to sea and find 'total freedom.' I hate this place, this hospital. I hate this town. It's just too... too..."

"Small," I finished for him. I opened my eyes to find him looking down at me, surprised. "This town is small. And all the people in it are small-minded." I sighed and let my shoulders slump. "There's no room for a guy to stretch his legs around here. No place for him to run wild and free, like he should."

(like I should)

I fought to keep the disappointment out of my voice, but failed, my words trembling. Ussop looked down at his hands and frowned, a slightly saddened expression taking over his face. "You're right." He said lowly. "It's suffocating." He paused and laid his hand over mine. "I'm sorry." Our eyes met and I saw my own feelings reflected. I gripped his hand, even more tightly than I'd done yesterday night, and let a small smile creep onto my lips.

"It's okay." I said softly.

Silence hung heavily in the air between us.

I suddenly had a magnificent idea.

"Hey, Ussop," I said eagerly.

"Yeah, Luffy?" Ussop replied.

"I have an idea. Instead of you telling _me _a story, why don't you let me tell _you _one?" I giggled at Ussop's perplexed expression, which then softened into a smile.

"Alright," he said. "But be warned, it's not as easy as it looks. It takes years of practice for one to even begin to-"

"Once upon a time," I interrupted him. "There was a man who ruled the sea. He was a pirate, more powerful and more free than any other, and had attained the world's riches and seen all its magnificent wonders. His name was..." I paused, thinking of the coolest name I could under the circumstances. "Gold Roger. Roger wasn't like other pirates, though. He didn't pillage or murder or steal. He was an adventurer, a man whose greatest joy in life was to explore far-off lands and discover new people and places to befriend and explore. He, more than any other man alive, loved his freedom." I paused, letting my words sink in. Ussop's face was intense, and I knew that he was paying attention.

"Gold Roger was also very strong. They say that his fists were so powerful, that not even a whole armada of enemy vessels could overtake him. Roger was the strongest man alive. He didn't use his immense strength for himself, though. Oh, no. He only used his gifts to protect the ones he held most dear, his family and his friends. His crew. Whenever someone or something tried to harm them, he would fly into a murderous rage, never stopping until whatever was threat he was presented with was completely defeated. Because of this, however, he was branded a criminal, condemned to never live a normal life as long as he lived. Of course, this suited him just fine.

"There were many people in the world who feared Roger for his monstrous abilities. Pirates and ordinary citizens alike, wanted him dead. They called him a name, one which, to this day, strikes fear into the hearts of humans. The most powerful pirate of all. The Pirate King. While most would be repulsed or even insulted by such a title, Roger embraced it willingly, happily even, and sailed the seas he loved so much under the name for many years. He was happy. His crew was happy. They remained like this for a long time. Until something happened." I swallowed and thought over my next words very carefully.

"One day, out of nowhere, Gold Roger was struck with an incurable disease. The doctor on his ship told him that he had less than a year to live. While others would have been grief-stricken over this development, falling into despair and losing all hope, Roger stood tall. He laughed at his fate, tears of both joy and sorrow leaking from his eyes and falling to the deck of his beloved ship. Despite his impending death, the man was satisfied. His crew however, was devastated. The captain that they loved so much was dying right before their eyes and they could do nothing to stop it. Roger smiled, and, with his head held high, told them to not feel sadness over his death. 'I've lived my life,' he said proudly. 'And now it seems that it has finally come to an end. I've seen the world. I've acquired its riches. They're still where I left them, ready for the next fool to come along and take up my journey. So don't despair! One way or another, I am never going to die!' The very next day, the Pirate King surrendered himself to the government. His crew disbanded, but the love in their hearts that they had for each other remained as strong and as indestructible as ever.

"As he kneeled on the execution platform, blades poised at his throat, ready to cut, he looked out over the crowd of thousands of people, all of whom had come to watch him die. He smiled widely and proudly, never showing an ounce of fear. When at last the time came for him to die, there came a cry from among the throng, a single clear voice in a hushed mass of terrified people. 'Where is it!' the voice cried out. 'Where did you bury your fortune, the greatest treasure ever gathered? Before you die, say it!' The Pirate King merely grinned widely. As the blades began to descend, inches away from taking his life, these were the final words he said; 'My treasure? If you can find it, it's yours. Search! I've left everything I owned in that place!' And with that, he was stabbed through the heart and died, the smile still on his face. His death inspired countless generations of pirates and freedom-seekers. His legendary loot became the dream of thousands, and thus, Gold Roger did not die, but lived on in the adventurous hearts of those who followed in his footsteps."

I finished the story.

There was silence, and I looked over to see Ussop gaping at me with wide, wonder-filled eyes. His entire lower lip was separated from his skull, leaving a very comical expression on his face. I laughed at him and he shook his head.

"...Wow, Luffy... just... wow," he half-whispered. "That was awesome! That was _way _better than any of the stories I've ever told! Who'd you hear that from anyway? I've never heard it before."

I giggled. "My brother made it up for me when I was first diagnosed." I said. "I used to have to spend all my time here, in this room, all alone. Ace came to visit me everyday then. He brought me toys and candy, told me jokes, and made up stories to keep me entertained. If it weren't for him, I know I would've lost my mind a long time ago."

"That's so cool," Ussop breathed. "I'll have to meet your brother and beg him to teach me his story-telling ways." Ussop began to smile. "So... Pirate King?"

I shrugged. "I like pirates." I said simply. "And meat, but mostly pirates."

"I see," said Ussop. "Well, in any case, that was a wonderful story. It really cheered me up. Thanks, Luffy."

"No problem." I said. "If I ever grow up, I want to be just like Gold Roger. I want to be free to do whatever I want, and I want the strength to protect what's precious to me."

"Me too!" Ussop agreed, nodding vigorously. "I want to be a brave man of the sea just like he was!"

I laughed at the seriousness of his face. "He's not real, Ussop." I said, raising a hand to calm the boy down. "... But I wish he was."

"... Yeah."

What I didn't tell Ussop was the real reason why I wanted to be like Gold Roger. In truth, all I wanted was to be remembered when I died, just like he was. I wanted to leave behind a story, a piece of myself to be forever immortalized in the hearts of my loved ones.

I didn't want to be forgotten.

When Ussop finally said his goodbyes and shut the door on me for the night, I lay in the darkness, thinking. I thought of death, life, and everything that came between. Would Zoro and Nami be sad when I died? Would Grandpa and Ace? Had I done any good with my existence thus far, or was I just going to leave a useless, thankless body behind for all of them to deal with?

I didn't know.

I just didn't know.

**Alright! New Chapter at last! I wanted to thank everyone who has left a review for me to read, they've been suuuuuuuuuuper helpful. Hold onto your hats, kids, 'cause I plan on updating a lot more often from now on. Thanks a ton! I love you guys! - Mikki**


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 10: Meeting the Crew **

A whole day passed with no one coming to visit me. The only person I spoke to was Trafal-guy when he came in to remove the I.V line and oxygen tube, and even he didn't have much to say. For hours I lay swaddled beneath my blankets, absentmindedly rubbing the sore spot on my arm where the needle had been, and stared up at the tiled ceiling.

It was _so _boring.

I counted no less than sixty-eight light green tiles, a dark purple bruise forming where I pressed down repeatedly with my thumb on the inside of my elbow. Outside, the world was glowing. The twilight sun dripped its rays through the slits in the blinds over my window, and when I checked the clock, it read 7:35 p.m, which meant that visiting hours were officially over. I was disappointed. I had been really looking forward to another visit from Ussop, seeing as neither Nami or Zoro knew where I was, and felt the bitter cold of lonliness creep into my chest.

The whole room was surprisingly quiet. The heart monitor had been removed and there was no wheezing gasp of the oxygen pump. I could hear my pulse in my ears and it unnerved me. Everything was too still, like the calm before the storm. I decided that I needed to move around so I kicked off my blankets and swung my legs over the side of the bed. Instantly a chill ran up my spin. I slipped a flannel blanket off the mattress and wrapped it around my shoulders like a cape, trying to suppress the shivers. I padded softly over to the window and peeked out between the blinds. The sun was setting on the horizon, and already the beginnings of inky night could be seen in the sky.

I hoped that there was going to be a moon.

I turned away from the window and looked hard at the thick metal door to my room. I wanted to leave through it. I wanted so badly to just open it up and walk away, never stopping until I was far, far away from this damn place. I took a step forward, and then another. Soon my hand was on the silver doorknob, poised to turn. I suddenly panicked. What if someone came in to check on me while I was gone and freaked out? I'd get in trouble, not just with Trafal-guy and the other nurses, but with my family too.

A seed of bitterness formed in my throat at the thought. So what? So what if I got in trouble. It was worth it to not spend one more goddamn second in this room.

I gently twisted the knob, and a crack of light appeared as I pulled the door back. I peered out into the hallway. It was deserted, no medical staff or orderlies anywhere in sight. Perfect, I thought. I walked out into the corridor and shut the heavy door behind me as quietly as I could. The last thing I wanted was for my little outing to be cancelled by the telltale squeak of a hinge. I looked both ways down the hall, checking one last time to make sure that the coast was clear, before veering of to the left. My bare feet made soft _shushing _sounds on the carpeted floor, and I pulled my blanket closer for warmth. I passed at least a dozen white doors, each with tiny printed names pinned on the outside, and at last came to another corridor. I chose to go right this time, and as I walked, excitement slowly grew within me. This wasn't the first time I'd snuck out of my hospital room, but it was the first time I had done so not in either the middle of the night or in the early morning.

I came upon a reception desk and immediately flattened myself against the wall. I glanced around the bend to see if I'd been spotted, by luckily, there was no one there. I had never been to this part of the hospital before. Unlike the isolation ward, the walls were bright blue and had a sense of joy about them that the minty green wallpaper of my section lacked. It smelled of fresh flowers, and the rooms appeared to be bigger in size than my own. I was curious, so I followed the line of doors down another hallway. Eventually, I approached a large glass window, one that was fixed onto the inside wall and displayed a large room filled with what appeared to be baskets.

I stopped and stared. Inside the baskets were babies.

There were at least a dozen of them, little wriggling pink blobs cloaked in either blue or pink blankets and hats. I felt my eyes widen, and I put one of my hands on the glass. They were so tiny. I marveled at how little and fragile they looked. Their faces were round and full of innocence, eyes squeezed shut and chubby chins and cheeks poking out from under their wrappings. Some of them looked so new that their skin was still dark red in color, their wispy hairs still plastered down to their tiny foreheads. I had never seen babies up close before.

My breath fogged the glass as I gazed in at them, both of my hands now pressed against the glass pane and causing my blanket to fall from my shoulders. They were beings just fresh into the world, at the very start of their lives, and I couldn't help it as a pang of jealousy ran through me. I had been like that when I was born, but now, my short life was ending. I never got the chance to have a normal life, one of growing up, and of discovery and joy. They would have that chance, or at least, I hoped that they would. Seeing the children made warmth bloom within me, and I felt, from the bottom of my heart, happy. I was happy for them. I was happy that they were going to live.

It wasn't a forced feeling, just one that was simply there. And it was warm.

"They're beautiful, aren't they?" Came a voice from behind me suddenly. I spun around and saw a woman standing just behind me, looking over my shoulder. She was tall, and had long dark green hair that was tied into a messy ponytail. She had bags under eyes as though she hadn't been sleeping, but her whole being radiated joy.

It took me a while to respond to her from my surprise, and when I did, it was hushed and embarrassed. "Um... yeah. They're really, uh, cute."

The woman giggled and looked at me thoughtfully. A deep blush crawled onto my cheeks and I turned away. She laughed again and put a hand on my shoulder. Together we looked into the room at the slumbering babies and smiled. "So," she asked after a moment of silence. "Is one of them your baby brother or sister?"

I turned sheepish and my eyes found the floor. "No..." I said carefully. "I was just... looking. I only have a big brother."

"I see," said the woman. She raised a slender finger and pointed at a basket on the right, dressed in blue. "That one's mine," she said cheerfully. "He's my first child. He's quite big, too. Eight pounds three ounces., can you believe it?" She laughed and I looked up at her face. She sighed. "Isn't he the most gorgeous thing you've ever seen?" She sounded awed.

I looked at the baby boy and smiled. "He's... big?" I said. I wasn't sure what the most gorgeous thing I'd ever seen was, so I didn't know how to answer her. The mother raised a hand to her mouth and chuckled, amused by my answer. "What's his name?" I asked.

The woman smiled. "I don't know yet." She said. "I haven't picked one out for him. Nothing sounds good." She put her hand on her chin and looked like she was thinking. Then, she turned to me. "What about you? Do you have any good ideas for a name?"

I thought for a second, wracking my brain for ideas. The only one I came up with sounded kinda lame, but I told it to her anyway. "Sabo." I said simply. "I like the name Sabo."

"Sabo, huh?" The woman's gaze softened, and her eyes looked to be seeing something very far away. "I like it. That's a very good name."

I was shocked. "You're not actually gonna call him that, are you?" I asked in surprise. "I mean, I just came up with it on the spot!"

She shook her head and giggled. "Why not? It's a fine name," she said. "And it suits him. Sabo. My son." She pulled her robe closer to her and leaned her forehead against the window, closing her eyes. There was a long moment of silence, in which I began to feel uncomfortable.

"What's your name?" I suddenly asked.

It took a moment, but the woman answered warmly. "Makino," she said. "And what's yours?"

"Monkey D. Luffy!" I said with a wide grin. The newly named 'Makino' looked down at me and smiled back.

"Luffy, huh?" Makino chimed. "Well, 'Luffy,' this hallway is beginning to feel a tad too cold for me. I think I'll head back to my room."

"Okay," I said. "I've gotta get back before Trafal-guy finds me and yells at me, too." At this, Makino laughed again.

"Well, then, I do hope we see each other again, Luffy." She said. "Look out for my son, okay? I'm going to go get some rest. Lord know I'll need it when he gets to be a little older." I smiled and nodded my head. Makino turned and made her way down the hall, disappearing into a room a few doors down. I fixed my eyes on 'Sabo'. He had no hair to speak of, and he slept with his tiny mouth slightly open. I laughed.

I watched over Sabo for the next half hour, eventually forced to return to my room due to the dying red sunlight that streamed into the hallway, indicating that evening had set in. When I was finally buried beneath my blankets once more, my thoughts turned back to the baby.

I wondered if I would live long enough to meet him when he was all grown up.

* * *

In the middle of the night, I was awoken by the sound of my door opening and then shutting. Several pairs of feet shuffled over to my bedside, and then a harsh light was shone in my face, making me gasp. I though I was about to be taken, and thus, freaked out accordingly. But before I could release the bloody curdling scream I'd been preparing, three different hands clamped over my mouth, effectively shutting me up. It was then that I heard a very familiar voice.

"Idiot! Shut up or we'll be discovered!"

My eyes flew open, and there in the darkness, clutching a flashlight in his free hand, was my best friend, Roronoa Zoro. My heart soared, a sudden rush of pure joy and happiness shooting through me. I cried out excitedly, grinning madly through the hands on my mouth, and moved to tackle Zoro with an enormous hug. Before I could though, something slammed into my head, sending me sprawling onto the floor in a heap of tangled limbs and sheets. "Ouch!" I cried, holding my head in my hands.

"That's what you get for being stupid!" Came another voice from above me. "Do you want us to get kicked out?" I looked up and saw Nami, an annoyed frown on her face, towering above me. My grin grew impossibly wide and I leaped to my feet. I enveloped the girl in a huge hug.

"Nami! Zoro! You're here!" I cried, but softly so that no one outside of the room would hear. "How come? How'd you find me? I'm so happy to see you!" Nami released an exasperated sigh in my arms, but slowly relaxed and returned the embrace. She buried her face into my chest and we stood there for a moment, just drinking in each other's presences. Off to the side, I saw Zoro smirk, like he knew something I didn't.

"Hey, what about me?" A third voice called in the gloom. The light from Zoro's flashlight illuminated the tip of a long, dark nose, and I practically jumped out of my skin form excitement. I let Nami go and turned to face the third figure.

"Ussop! You're here, too! I'm so glad!" I hugged my newest friend and I thought I saw him blush in the low light. As soon as I let him go, I turned so that I was facing all three of my friends. They were all looking at me with similar expressions on their faces, like mixed happiness and relief. I felt a rush of guilt. They were worried about me, and that was the last thing I wanted. I smiled sadly and fought to keep the tears I'd been holding back inside.

I reached over to my bedside table and flipped on the lamp. The entire room was suddenly flooded with a soft golden light that made all of us blink and rub our eyes. Zoro turned off his flashlight and stowed it in the black backpack he was wearing. I noticed that all three of my friends were wearing smilier attire; black shirts and jackets with black pants. It was almost like they were burglars.

"Why are you guys dressed like that?" I asked, tilting my head to the side. "You look like you're about to beat me down and steal all my money."

Zoro clicked his tongue, suddenly scowling. "Because we had to bust in here, that's why." He crossed his arms and I saw Nami do the same. "This damn place is so freaking locked down, we barely got past the front desk! If it wasn't for long-nose here, we would've gotten lost, caught, and thrown out, just like earlier." He jabbed his thumb at Ussop, who blushed and rubbed the back of his head. Nami muttered something under her breath that sounded suspiciously like "the only one who would've been lost is you."

"So you guys have met Ussop already?" I said excitedly. "That's so great! I was afraid it'd have to wait until they let me go." I giggled and everyone in the room smiled. The air was quickly becoming warmer and the sadness in me was evaporating.

"Yeah, we met him." Nami answered, putting her hand on the story-teller's shoulder. "We tried to come see you earlier today, but the female dogs at the front desk said no visitors. This guy was in our same situation, so we came up with the idea to sneak in together after-hours. I gotta say, I'm surprised you were able to make a friend in this hellish place. It smells terrible." She made a face and I laughed.

"I know," I said, sticking out my tongue. "It's gross. It stinks even worse when they hook you up to stuff, cause then it's right in your face." We all shared a laugh, and then the air suddenly became tense. I looked and saw that Nami's eyes had suddenly filled with tears. I was confused, and stepped toward her with my hand outstretched. "What's wrong, Nami? Why are you crying?"

Nami looked surprised, lifting a finger to her eyes only to find them wet. "Huh...?" she said in confusion, like she wasn't sure why she had started to cry. "Well, I'm... um... I'm... Oh, God," She tried to laugh, but what came out of her throat was more of a light sob than anything else. Zoro's tough facade broke for a moment, and he looked like he truly wanted to comfort her. I was about to ask Nami what was wrong again before I suddenly found myself being crushed by Nami's thin yet strong arms. She leaned into my shoulder so that I couldn't see her face, but I knew that she was crying because I felt tiny warm droplets falling onto my shirt.

Her whole body was wracked with silent sobs, her grip on me fierce, as though she never wanted to let go. I pulled her deeper into the embrace with my own arms and let my forehead fall to her collarbone. Tears stung my eyes and I fought hard to keep them from spilling onto her clean pink shirt.

I lost, and streams of water began to pour from my eyes like a pair of floodgates had suddenly been opened. I let Nami cling to me and cry, controlling my own tears as best I could. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Zoro bow his head, and Ussop hastily scrub at his face with the back of his hand. Nami and I stood like that for several seconds, before at last she released a shuddering breath and pulled away. She wiped at her eyes furiously, seemingly angry at something or someone.

"I'm sorry," her voice was hushed yet strangled and tore at my heart. "It's just... I was worried. When I found out from Zoro that you might be in the hospital...I was..." I met her gaze with surprise, and then let a regretful frown overtake my lips. "I was... I was so worried, Luffy... I knew that you were... sick... but... for a second, I thought that... I might never see you again, and... and I just... I'm just so glad you're okay." Fresh tears welled in her eyes and spilled over onto her cheeks.

I felt like the worst human being in the world.

"I'm the one who should be sorry," I said quietly, biting my lip. "I made all of you worry about me, and I hate that. So I'm sorry, Nami. I'm so-"

"Will you quit it?" Zoro's angry tone broke through my thoughts and I looked up at him. He had his arms uncrossed and his fists were clenched tightly at his sides. "How many times do I have to tell you that this shit isn't your fault before you get it through your thick skull?" He had begun to visibly shake, whether from anger or from some other emotion I didn't know, and had to take a deep breath to calm himself. "We all came here tonight because we were worried about you. Big deal. Why wouldn't we worry? You're our precious friend who's suffering right in front of us and there's nothing we can do to help. If anyone's gonna apologize, it should be us, Luffy. We weren't there for you when you needed us most. What kinds of friends does that make us? Horrible ones! Wasn't it you who promised to always take care of us and to be our friend? If we can't even reciprocate that feeling, then what good are we?" His voice was near a shout at the end, and it made me flinch.

Zoro stepped forward and grabbed the front of my shirt, bringing his face close to mine. When he spoke, it was a pained whisper. "We promised, didn't we?" His eyes held unshed tears, and I was unsurprised to feel drops of my own cascading unbidden down my cheeks before I even fully realized what had just been said. He pulled me into a stiff hug, and I smelled his familiar scent on his shirt, and deep inside I knew that things were going to be okay. I took a shuddering breath and let him hold onto me, like Nami had. This was the first time that my illness had been so real to either of them, and so I just let them have their individual moments.

When at last Zoro detached himself from me, his eyes were completely dry, the only evidence of him having cried a pink splotch on the tip of his nose. I offered him a weak smile and he returned it.

Ussop, who had been in the corner quietly witnessing these events, was wiping desperately at his face, trying to stop the waterfall that was streaming from his eyes and nose. "That - was - so - beautiful - I - might - just - cry!" He blubbered, continuing to sob. I giggled at him and flashed my wide toothy grin.

"You already are, Ussop." I said.

"Sh-Shaddap!" He cried, snot shooting from his nose. I laughed at him, and soon Zoro and Nami joined in. It was a deep, soul-cleansing, throat-burning laugh. We laughed at Ussop. We laughed at our pain, our sadness, and the bitter unfairness of life. Our voices melded together and became a single melancholy cadence that danced off the walls and reverberated deep into our bellies. Ussop was laughing/crying, too.

When at last our laughs died down to small fits of giggles and hiccups, Zoro wiped his eyes and stepped toward Ussop. He was smirking, and leaned forward so that Ussop's nose was almost touching his. I watched as Ussop became uncomfortable under his steely gaze and tried to back up, only to meet wall. Zoro continued to stare at the boy for a long moment, until finally, he stepped back and smirked, somewhat triumphantly. "You pass." He said with conviction.

Ussop was confused. "Pass what?" he said, raising an eyebrow.

"The test." Zoro and Nami chorused, making me chuckle.

"What test?" Said Ussop, annoyance plain on his face.

"To be Luffy's friend," said Nami, cutting Zoro off. A vein popped in his forehead. "There's no way we would ever let just _anyone _be friends with him. There're too many weirdos in the world that might try to take advantage of his, er, _kindness. _But you passed, so it's okay." Nami grinned and crossed her arms. "You can be our friend too if you like."

Ussop looked utterly confused by the whole ordeal, but at the mention of the other two becoming his friends as well, he perked up. "You guys?" He said. "You want to be friends with me, too? Why? I just met you, like, twelve hours ago."

"Don't worry, the witch over here has only ever met Luffy one other time, too." Zoro piped up, jabbing a thumb in Nami's direction. He was on the floor holding his ribs in the next instant, Nami standing over him with her elbow raised. "You... you bitch..." He managed to choke out.

Nami glared at him. "That's all it takes with Luffy," she said to Ussop. "Just one meeting, and you basically belong to him. He's selfish like that."

"Oi." I said, raising my hand to alert her that I was, in fact, standing right next to her.

"But," Nami said, her eyes softening. "He's also kind like that, too."

I blushed, and quickly scurried over to help Zoro off the floor. He coughed as he stood up and shot Nami a death glare. She simply smiled sweetly at him like she hadn't just tried to snap one of his ribs.

Ussop was smiling to himself and had adopted a thoughful look. "Friends, huh?" He said. "I didn't think I'd ever have any other than Kaya. It feels...nice. Warm." The three of us grinned at him and he blushed like mad. While we were laughing at him, Zoro bent down to his backpack and unzipped it.

"What are you doing, Zoro?" I asked.

"Getting your present." he replied, reaching into the backpack and withdrawing a paper-wrapped parcel. He tossed it to me and I caught it. I smiled gleefully and didn't hesitate to rip off the paper as fast as I could. Inside was a small shoe box, and I grimaced at the thought of getting _shoes _from my friends as a gift. Zoro must have read my mind, because next he said, "Don't worry, it's not shoes." I laughed sheepishly and opened the lid of the box with care. Inside, were three distinct items, one from each of them by the look of it. It was obvious who each gift was from. There was a large ripe tangerine with a pink bow tied to the stem, which I knew was from Nami. On the bottom of the box was a folded piece of paper, which I removed and determined to be a hand-drawn pirate flag with a skull and crossbones wearing a straw hat, which could only have come from Ussop due to Zoro's lack of anything resembling artistic style.

And then there was a shiny black pocketknife. I picked it up carefully, running my thumb over the smooth exterior, before flipping open the blade and examining it. It was sharp, that much I could tell, and gleamed silver in the lamplight. _That _was from Zoro.

At first, my words caught in my throat and I didn't know what to say. "You guys... thank you." I said quietly, bowing my head. "Really, thank you. These are... the best presents I've ever gotten. Truly." I looked up at my three friends and saw that they all wore satisfied smirks, which made me smile.

"Don't mention it," Zoro said.

"We knew that you needed _something _to cheer you up after having to stay in this damn place," said Nami.

"So we all thought of something, and poof!" Ussop was the only one who looked a tad embarrassed.

"Thanks." I said again. "I really mean it. Right now, this is just what I needed."

We all shared a smile.

I was so warm inside that I feared my skin would actually start glowing. At that moment, the three people in front of me were my entire world, and nothing could change that. They loved me, and I loved them, that's all there was to it. I didn't need anything else, just them, to be happy. That was what I believed.

And then I met a boy named Sanji.

**DAMN! It's been too long guys! I'm sorry for the slow update but school had been pissing me off lately, sooo... yeah! I hope you guys enjoy this chapter. I poured my heart and soul into it. We're finally to Sanji. WOW. I honestly did not expect to get this far, but you guys asked for it, so here it is! PLEASE LEAVE REVIEWS! It makes it easier to survive. Trust me. - Mikki **


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 11: Sanji**

Four months had passed since I was released from the hospital, and my friends came to visit me everyday without fail. Grandpa and Ace were becoming even more distant, and now stayed away for long periods of time, sometimes days, and I had no idea why. Grandpa says it was for "training." I thought it was because they couldn't stand to be in my presence any more than they had to. I couldn't blame them. It was hard to sit and watch as somebody close to you withered away and died. But it still made me sad.

I wasn't lonely, though. Not even a tiny bit. I had my friends to thank for that. Each day, even when someone was absent, there was always at least _one _person, Zoro, Nami, or Ussop, who arrived at my house and kept me company. We played together, told stories, and gradually grew closer than any of us had ever been to each other. I found out things about Ussop and Nami.

I learned that Nami's step-dad, Arlong, was abusive and cruel. When her mother had died, she had been practically kidnapped by him and forced to work drawing maps for his shipping company. She cried when she said this and I held her. He had slashed the skin of her shoulder in a fit of rage, telling her that she belonged to only him, and that she should be grateful. Sometimes, she came over sporting bruises on her face and arms, dark purple and in the shape of large fingers. I would shake with rage and threaten to go kill him, and then Nami would hold up her hands and force a smile, telling me that she was fine and that she could handle it. I let her sleep at my house on these nights, her curling up in my sheets like they were some kind of shield against the world. She slept in my room more than her own. She told us that one day she wanted to run far away from Arlong and his wrath to explore the world, drawing maps for everything and seeing the sights she had only been able to dream about. I said that I'd take her.

She smiled and hugged me. Her body was warm.

Ussop was loud and always spouting long speeches about how he was going to grow up to become a great warrior of the sea. He loved the sea so much it made me want to laugh, but then again, so did I. He talked a lot about Kaya, and how happy he was that she had finally woken up. She had to stay at the hospital most days and I pitied her. I knew what that was like, and so did Ussop. The depth of his care for her really touched me, and he blushed whenever I pointed it out, calling me an idiot and hitting me upside the head. Ussop said that the next time we were all at the hospital together (likely because of me) he would introduce us to Kaya properly. I was looking forward to it, because it meant that I could thank her for taking care of him for me, even when I hadn't known him. We drew pictures of things ("What the _hell is _that, Luffy?"), and hung them up all around my house. The place was slowly becoming more colorful and full of life, which made my insides glow like the sun. I said that Ussop could come with Nami and me on our adventures.

He leaped into the air and fist-pumped, saying that hell yeah he would. Great Captain Ussop would always be one for adventure.

Zoro, even though he was my best friend, didn't say as much as the other two did whenever we opened up and talked. I didn't need him to. I already knew enough about him, and he knew enough about me. There wasn't much that needed to be said between us. He would simply lean against a wall or sit on the ground with his hands behind his head and listen. He was good at that. One day, I asked him if he would come on our journey, grinning my trademark grin and putting my hands on my hips. Zoro, being Zoro, sighed dramatically and called me a stupid idiot. Even though he didn't say it out loud, his answer was obviously "of course I would, dumbass."

I felt very loved.

* * *

Days went by like flashes of lightening, each one passing more quickly than the last, and soon I was only a few weeks from turning ten. This was a huge deal to me, because it meant that I would be reaching the halfway point of my expected life span, and therefore the end of half my life. Some nights I found myself at my bedroom window, staring out into the sky with tears in my eyes. Others I pulled my knees up to my chest and begged my disease to let me stay. For the first time in almost three years, I _wanted_ to live. I wanted it so badly I could taste it.

Whatever God or angel was watching over must have heard me, because the next morning, I woke up without any pain in my body whatsoever. At first, I couldn't believe it. I felt all over my body, looking for any sign of pain or discomfort, only to find none. I took a deep breath, and it didn't hurt.

I cried.

I began to realize that I was steadily getting better, much to the delight and disbelief of those around me, and even as the weather changed and become colder I was able to run around outside with Ussop and Zoro like any other almost-ten-year-old. Nights passed where I didn't wake up unexpectedly, gasping for air, and when I coughed, no blood came out. Even Trafal-guy couldn't believe the progress I'd made. He removed the stethoscope from my chest and sighed.

"It's incredible, kid," he said, rubbing his eyebrow with his thumb. "Six months ago, I would've told you you were a goner. But now, it's like your body actually _wants _to live." He smirked and looked down at me. "Your pulse and blood pressure are twenty times stronger than the last time I was here, and your cell count has increased dramatically. What's your secret?" He folded his arms and leaned back in his chair.

"No secret," I said happily, a wide grin splitting my face. "It's just that now, I've got a reason to keep living!" I laughed and reached my hand up to grasp the top of my trademark straw-hat. Trafal-guy's eyes softened and a genuine smile crept its way onto his face. He ruffled my hair affectionately and set his clipboard down on the table. We were alone in the kitchen, Grandpa and Ace away for the day and my friends yet to some over.

"Ah, the miracles of friendship." The doctor said. "Those kids of yours are really something else, aren't they?"

"Yup!" I said, blushing but retaining my smile.

"Ever since they arrived on the scene, you've only been getting better and better. Why is that, I wonder?" Trafal-guy turned his gaze out the window and momentarily looked sad. "It's amazing how the ones closest to us can make us want to live. I'm glad you found them, Luffy-ya." He looked back at me and moved to pack up his stuff. In his eyes, there was an emotion I couldn't quite place. It was warm, and made me feel good inside. Like when I was with Zoro, Nami, and Ussop.

Trafal-guy found all four of us asleep in my hospital room the morning after they came to see me. Instead of kicking them out and banishing them from ever visiting me again, like all of the other doctors and nurses would have, he simply smirked, and told them that they had full permission to come and see me whenever they liked. We all jumped for joy, our collective cries earning each of us a swift punch to the head, even Nami. At first, I was confused at why Trafal-guy was acting this way. He usually wasn't nice to anyone, let alone give them special treatment, and so I was a bit suspicious of his actions. When I confronted him about it, he merely shrugged and said, "They're medicine."

I was so happy.

Once Trafal-guy left, I waited for my friends to come. I lay on my back in the grass outside, savoring the chill. When Zoro found me, there were frozen tears on my cheeks, and he asked me why I was crying. I smiled and said: "I'm happy."

* * *

"Field trip?" I asked, raising an eyebrow. "What's thay?"

"It's a trip you take during the day to wherever you'd like." Said Nami smugly, her arms folded in front of her. "Usually, they apply to school, but today, it's for us."

I looked at her like she was crazy and stuffed the rest of my piece of toast in my mouth. Everyone had come today, and we sat in the living room around a plate of toast and muffins that Nami had so kindly prepared for us. I swallowed and reached for another slice.

"What do you mean?" I asked, tilting my head. "Are we going somewhere?"

Nami smirked confidently. "Yes, Luffy. Yes we are."

"Where?" I aksed.

"Wherever you want, dumbass." Said Zoro, hitting me on the arm as I tried to steal some of the muffin in his hand. "That's the whole point! We're tired of you forcing yourself to stay in this godforsaken house all the time, so we think it's time we went on a little trip." Ussop and Nami nodded their agreement.

I stared at all three of them, wiping my mouth on my sleeve. It was November, and even the inside of the house was becoming cold enough that I had to wear long-sleeves and a jacket. "A trip?" I said, almost to myself. "But... why? You guys know that I'm not allowed to go anywhere or do anything. If Grandpa finds out, he'll kill me. And plus, I haven't left this house in over two years, so I don't know where anything fun would be." I sighed and leaned against the legs of the couch.

Zoro put a warm hand on my shouler. "That's where we come in." He said, smiling. "We'll take you wherever you wanna go, regardless of how far it is. And as for your Gramps, he's never here anyway, so how's he gonna know?"

"We've already decided we're taking you," said Nami, frowning stubbornly. "So, whether you like it or not, you're coming with us. Even if we have to tie you up and drag you." She glared at me in a refuse-and-suffer kind of way, and I flinched. I thought about what she said for a moment, images of the park I used to visit and the butcher shop where Grandpa let me pick out the meat forming in my mind. If they were going to force me to go somewhere, I might as well make it someplace I really _wanted _to go.

I thought of the ocean.

I looked around at my friends and bit my lip. If there was one place I missed more than anything, it was the ocean. I hadn't even gotten a glimpse of it in the past two years, and the urge to go and see it burned within me. But it was far. Really far. Grandpa had to drive to get us there, and the road was thin and went along the side of a mountain. I wasn't sure if my friends would be willing to take me.

"The ocean." I mumbled, looking at my hands.

"What?" All three chorused, leaning towards me.

"The ocean," I said again, this time louder. "I want to see the ocean."

There was a moment of silence. I took it as a sign that they were admitting they couldn't go, and I couldn't help it as disappointment welled up inside me. I sighed and looked up. I was surprised to find all three of them staring at me with huge smiles on their faces.

"An excellent choice, if I do say so myself!" Said Ussop, giving me a thumbs-up.

"That's where I was planning on going anyway, so I guess it works out." Said Nami.

"The ocean, huh?" Said Zoro, smirking. "Haven't been there in awhile. It'll be a nice change of scenery from this boring place."

I gaped at them. "You'll really take me there?" I asked, mouth falling open. "But it's so far away! It'll take hours to get there by foot!"

My friends laughed at my expression and proceeded to stand up, lifting me with them. "That's what the train's for, stupid." Said Ussop, wiping a tear from his eye. "And of course we'll take you there. It's where you want to go, right?" I nodded slowly. "Well then, that's that!"

I couldn't believe what I was hearing. Were they really going through with this? Just because I asked them? I looked down at my feet and let my bangs fall over my eyes. "Thanks, guys." I muttered.

Zoro must've been the only one who heard me because he punched my lightly in the shoulder and smirked. "I keep telling you, don't mention it." I let Nami take me upstairs and into my room. She said that it was really cold outside and that we needed to pick out warm clothes for me to wear on the train. I sat on the bed with my hands in my lap as she rummaged through my entire wardrobe, tossing out various jackets and underclothes until they formed a pile on the floor. At last, she let out a satisfied huff.

She walked over to me, and in her hands I saw a bright red sweater that I'd forgotten I'd had, along with a pair of black gloves gloves and a hat. I frowned at the hat and protectively raised my hands to cover my treasure. Nami rolled her eyes. "You can still wear the hat, just put this on underneath." She said. "It's colder today than it's been all month. They even say it might snow." At the mention of snow, my eyes lit up and a wide smile took over my face.

"Snow?" I asked, awed. "I love snow! My brother and I used to always go to the park with grandpa and made snowmen and have snowball fights!" I let my expression sadden a fraction before taking the clothing out of Nami's arms. "But that was before..." Nami gazed at me worriedly and I quickly forced a grin. "Well, nevermind! You guys'll play with me if it snows, won't you?" Nami smiled and flicked the center of my forehead affectionately.

"Sure we will," she said warmly. "Now c'mon. Put on your stuff and let's go! We've been planning this trip all week, and you don't want to keep us waiting, do you?" I shook my head and laughed, hurriedly pulled the sweater on over the thin jacket I was wearing. I slipped on the hat and gloves and made sure my own straw-hat was securely positioned on top. Nami smiled and led me back down the stairs. Once we reached the bottom, I saw that Zoro and Ussop were wearing similar clothing to mine, each with their own gloves and a hat. I hoped that it would snow. It had been so long since I'd been able to enjoy the winter time, and it would be nice to spend it with my friends.

I was getting excited. The thought of the ocean loomed in my mind, and I couldn't keep the happy grin from splitting my face. Zoro and Ussop smiled at me. Nami came up behind us and I saw that she had pulled on a long white overcoat and matching mittens. "Alright, you guys," she said, placing her hands on her hips. "It's officially... nine-thiry a.m, which gives us a littler over thirteen hours to get to the ocean and back before Luffy's Gramps gets home and finds him gone. Now, this should be plenty of time, so long as no one gets lost and everyone follows my directions completely." She shot a glare at Zoro when she said the word "lost" and he frowned. "With that said, let's get going! The train station's not too far from here so we can just walk. Luffy," she turned to me and met my gaze. "The instant you start to get tired or feel something, you tell us, alright?"

I nodded vigorously, giving her a mock salute and smiling. "Yes ma'am, commander Nami!" I said. "But don't worry, I feel fine today! I promise I won't ruin the trip by passing out, vomiting, or having a seizure!" I said the last part as seriously as I could.

"Okay, okay," Nami deadpanned, rubbing her temple. "That's good to know. Well then, with that settled, let's go." All of us fist-pumped and let out a cry of "yeah!" As we headed towards the front door, I suddenly became anxious. What if Gramps came home early and found me missing? What if he told me I could never see my friends again? I paused just before the open door and stared at my feet. Ussop must have noticed my hesitation, because he gently grabbed my wrist and pulled me out of the house with him.

Into the world I'd been missing so terribly.

* * *

Walking the ten blocks to the train station gave me a chance to see some of the changes in the town I'd been born in. There were new shops that lined the sidewalk, as well as many trees and bushes that were planted in places I hadn't seen before. The buildings seemed taller, older, and the rush of cars as they passed us by sent shivers down my spine. I walked with Nami on my left and Zoro on my right, Ussop tagging behind us on the slim sidewalk. I asked them about the various buildings, how long they'd been there, if they were any fun, and about how long it would take us to get to the ocean.

Nami said about an hour, give or take.

I watched as my breath condensed into thin white clouds above my nose, floating into the cold air and disappearing like tiny ghosts too frightened to stay. The tip of my nose was bright red, and my fingers stung from the chill, but despite this I wasn't cold. My friends kept me warm, and as I walked, the heat grew stronger and stronger until my insides were downright toasty. When at last we arrived at the train station, I stopped in front of the gate and stared up at the great flashing sign. There were so many places listed, so many different destinations that I could only guess and dream about. I grinned.

Zoro, who was the oldest out of us, bought the tickets. He handed us each one, and as I slid mine through the turnstile I pretended that I was a power ranger, going to transform. I laughed to myself and hopped through the three pronged gate to my waiting friends. Zoro called me an idiot and Ussop was laughing.

The three of us waited at the platform for ten minutes until the train arrived. My whole body was quivering with excitement. This was the first time I had ever been on a train, and on top of that, we were headed to the ocean, my favorite place in the whole world. We boarded the train and quickly found four seats by the opposite window. Zoro immediately leaned his head back against the glass and began to snore, while Nami, Ussop, and I brought out a deck of cards and began to play go-fish. As the train began to move, I couldn't help but stare out the window as the scenery flew by us more quickly than I'd ever seen. The sky was dark and pregnant-looking, and I silently sent out a prayer for snow. How cool would it be if we were all sitting by the ocean, and it started to snow on us?

For the next half-hour, I kept myself entertained by listening to Ussop's stories and snacking on the lunches we'd bought at the station. Zoro stayed asleep the whole time, only stirring when he accidentally drooled a little on Nami's coat and she smacked him upside the head. He fell on the floor and we all laughed at him. Once we calmed down, I saw that Ussop had fixed Nami with a quizzical stare. She noticed and raised an eyebrow.

"What?" She asked. "Do I have something on my face?"

Ussop shook his head. "No, I was just curious about something." He said, stroking his chin.

"About what?" I piped up, glancing back and forth between the two.

"Well, Luffy said that the two of you met when you fell out of the tree in his backyard, right?" The two of us nodded, and I thought I saw Nami pale a little. "That's all fine and good, but my question is, what the hell were you doing up there in the first place?" Nami stiffened and let out a nervous laugh.

"Well, I-" she began.

"I want to know, too," said Zoro, who had picked himself off the floor and settled back into his seat. "It's seems really fishy to me that you would just _happen _to be climbing a tree in somebody else's backyard. Knowing you, you obviously had an ulterior motive." He stared at her and the girl's cheeks began to burn furiously. She puffed out her lip and stared at her hands in her lap. We were all silent for a moment, waiting for her to reply.

Nami sighed. "Fine." She said, looking up to reveal her scarlet face. "I-I was... I was trying to rob his house, okay?"

There was a long moment of dead quiet.

At last, we all burst out laughing. Even Zoro was cracking up so heavily he couldn't sit straight and fell over. "SHUT UP!" Screamed Nami! "IT'S NOT FUNNY!" I laughed and held my stomach, tears streaming from my eyes.

"You... you were... you were trying to... rob... my house?!" I managed top get out before a fresh wave of laughter rook over and I lost all ability to speak. "Why the heck would you do that?!" Nami's face was so red she looked like she had a fever. She raised her fist and punched all of us on the head, effectively shutting us up.

"It's not like it was personal!" She cried indignantly. "It's just something I've had to over the years to earn a little extra for me and my sister!" She huffed and crossed her arms. "Jeez, you weren't the first house I stole from. I'd bagged a ton of places before yours, all better protected, and _all _without so much as breaking as sweat!"

"Ah!" Ussop cried, suddenly looking shocked. "It was YOU! I _knew _my piggy bank felt lighter than normal! You stole from me even though it's just me and my uncle, you witch!" Nami turned smug and looked down at him from over her nose.

"Oh, get over it." She said, raising her hands. "I didn't take _that _much, and it all went to a good cause!"

"That's not the point!" Cried Ussop, tears now leaking from his eyes. Zoro and I had begun laughing again, and we now rolled around on the floor of the train like a couple of crazy people, trying desperately to breathe through our chuckles. We remained like that until ten minutes later, when the train finally stopped at our destination.

We had arrived at the ocean.

* * *

I practically ran out of the train, my friends calling for me to wait up, and was immediately greeted by the sight of the huge gray-blue stretch of water that was the ocean. My smile was so wide it hurt my face, and my eyes were wide with joy. I tried to run toward it, only to be held back by Zoro, who was standing behind me looking pissed that I had just ditched him and the others. "Just hold on, stupid." He said. His voice was rough, but I saw the same excitement the I had reflected in his eyes. I stood patiently while Nami went and got our return tickets, the whole tome bouncing up and down on my heels like a toddler with a sugar high.

Once Nami had rejoined us, I took her hand and pulled her towards the station entrance. "C'mon, guys, let's go!" I shouted gleefully. "To the ocean!"

"To the ocean!" Ussop echoed happily behind me. The beach was only a short walk from the station, and as we climbed down the stone steps that led to the frozen sand my heart swelled in my chest. The sea was calm that day, but it had lost none of its luster and majesty since the last time I came to visit it. My shoes crunched on the sand as I rushed up to the water's edge, and I peered at my reflection in the dusty blue water, grinning. Nami forbade me from touching the water, saying that the last thing she wanted to deal with was me with a cold, and so all I did was stand there and drink in the scenery. It was beautiful. I looked out over the waves and was amazed that I could see no land on the other side. I wondered what it would be like to sail into that horizon and never look back. I heard Zoro call out to me and I turned. He, Ussop, and Nami were all staring up into the sky with wondering looks on their faces.

"Look, Luffy!" Zoro said, pointing and smiling. I looked up. Drifting down from the heavens, like tiny white angel feathers set loose on a breeze, were thousands of snowflakes. The first flakes that reached my eye level landed on my outstretched glove, sticking like cotton spores to the fabric. I stared wonderingly at them. Glancing around, I saw that the world was alive with falling snow, silently landing on everyone and everything in sight, and a soft smile lit up my face.

I got my wish.

I padded quietly over to my friends, who were all still staring up into the sky with awe. "It's beautiful." I murmured. They all turned to me and nodded. For a long time, all of us were quiet. We simply stood there in our little circle, watching the snow fall down on top of us without a care in the world. The steady sound of small waves lapping against the shore was like music to us, and lulled us into a state of cold-driven euphoria. I tilted my head back and let snowflakes fall onto my exposed face. They melted away almost instantly, leaving small cold teardrops in their wake, and I savored the sensation. It felt so wonderful.

The silence was broken by a hungry growl from my stomach, which caused me to blush and look down. My friends laughed at me, but then heard their own bellies rumble in response to mine and grew quiet. "Let's go find somewhere to eat." Said Nami, leading us away from the beach and back to the stone steps. We all nodded in agreement and made to follow her. I cast one last longing glance over my shoulder at the ocean, taking in the sight of the snow falling softly over it and disappearing into the water and saving it eternally in my memory. I smiled and turned back to my friends who were waiting for me at the top of the steps.

"Man, I'm hungry!" I said rubbing my stomach. "Where should we go to eat?"

"I know a place," said Nami, pointing towards the town a little ways away. "There's this really cool restaurant just across the way that my mom took me to once. It's like a boat, and floats on the water! Anyway, the food there is pretty cheap, but it's good, too!" That was all I needed to hear.

"Then what are we waiting for?" I cried, stepping towards the town. "Let's go!

* * *

We walked along the shoreline until we reached a large boardwalk that extended out into the sea. At the end was a giant fish-shaped building, with a flashing neon sign above it that read _Baratie. _Upon seeing it, my jaw dropped and my eyes went wide. It was quite possibly the coolest place I had ever seen in my short life. I ran along the boardwalk with an equally excited Ussop hurrying along beside me. Already, I could smell delicious scents as they wafted through the air. My stomach growled loudly, and I heard Zoro sigh dramatically behind me as he walked at a slower pace with Nami.

Once we reached the front doors, Ussop and I barreled inside. The inside of the restaurant was warm and I sighed happily as the heat burned my frozen cheeks and fingertips. Ussop and I waited for Nami and Zoro to catch up, and when they did, we all hurried into the lobby at the urging of our stomachs. We looked around, and were surprised to see that there was literally _no one else _in the entire restaurant. Every table was vacant, save for one in the very back where a stocky-looking waiter sat with his legs propped up, drinking from a steaming mug. My stomach called to me again, and at the very same moment, a tallish man with dark skin and a funny beard walked over to us. He had an extremely creepy smile on his face, and as he approached, I saw what looked like bloodstains on his apron.

"Hello, valued customers!" He said, grinning and batting his eyelashes. "Will it be a table for four? Or are your parents on the way?" I felt Zoro bristle at the mention of his parental units.

"Hmph. Parents." He muttered. "I don't think so."

"Alright then," said the waiter, whose name tag read "Patty". "In that case, right this way, please!" He led us to a table looking out over the sea and handed us four grown-up menus (Zoro's glare suggesting that if anyone even _tried _to give him a kiddie menu he would disembowel them), and told us to take our time in deciding. We thanked him and he bowed as he went away, causing us to giggle.

"What are you gonna get, Nami?" I asked the orange-haired girl.

"Dunno yet." She replied, studying the menu with careful eyes. "We don't have that much money left, so we should be frugal with our choices." I nodded and looked back at my own menu.

"As long as I get some kind of meat, I'll be good." I said, scanning the page for what I wanted. I settled on a cheap-looking steak and sighed at how small the portion-size was. Once we had all picked our meals, Patty came back over to us, his unnerving smile plastered back on his face.

"Have you decided what you would like?" He said sweetly, making me cringe.

Nami nodded and handed him our menus. We each told him what we wanted, and he said that it would be ready as soon as possible. He left and I turned my gaze once again out the window. The snow was falling more heavily now, and already a thin sheet of white powder was covering the outside sill of the window. I hoped that when I woke up the next morning, there would be enough snow for us to make a snowman.

I slid my seat out from under the table and dropped to the floor. "Where are you going?" Asked Ussop, who was playing with his water.

"Bathroom." I said simply. In my hand, I discreetly held a small bottle of red pills. Even though I was getting better, I still needed to take my medicine. Zoro nodded understandingly and I held up my free hand. "I'll be right back, so don't start eating without me!"

"Okay," said Ussop.

I turned and walked towards the left of the room. On the wall hung a small bathroom sign which marked the entrance of a long hallway. I walked down it until I reached the men's room and went inside. I quickly unscrewed the cap of the pills and removed two, downing them with water from the tap. I grimaced at the flavor and wiped my mouth on my sleeve. I hoped that the flavor of the meal would eradicate the awful taste in my mouth. As soon as I was finished, I exited the bathroom and made my way back down the hall and into the dining room. Just before I got there however, I heard a loud cry come from behind a pair of swivel doors on my right. Delicious smells were wafting out from them, so I determined that this was the kitchen.

"Let go of me you old fart!" Came the voice again, even more angry than before. "My soup is just fine! There must be something wrong with your ancient taste buds!" The person sounded young, like a kid, which piqued my interest. I decided to take a look at what was going on, and so poked my head through the double doors and into the kitchen.

I was greeted by the sight of an elderly man wearing an enormous chef's hat. His back was turned to me, but I could see a pair of small arms and legs thrashing in front of him, suspended in his grip.

"That soup was terrible, you little eggplant!" Shouted the man, shaking the child in his hand roughly. "The flavors were all wrong, and the presentation was sloppy! Haven't I taught you anything at all, boy?" He turned to the side and I got a better look at his face. I saw that he had an incredibly long yellow mustache, tied at the ends with red bows, as well as a single wooden peg-leg. He looks like a pirate! I thought to myself.

I turned my gaze to the boy dangling by his shirt in the man's grip. He was young, a little older than me by my guess, and had short blond hair. One half of his face was covered by his bangs, but the half I could see sported an unusually curly eyebrow, as well as an intense frown. He was glaring daggers at the man and thrashing violently from side to side, trying to get free. I saw that he, too, was wearing an apron. I wondered if he was a cook here.

"Shut up, shitty geezer!" The boy cried. "I made it exactly how you told me! I followed the recipe to the letter and I think it turned out just fine!" He finally managed to wriggle free of the man's grasp, and dropped to the floor with his fists clenched. He looked like he wanted to hit the man, but the old chef simply stared down at him with a cold frown.

"That's your problem right there, eggplant!" He shouted, crossing his arms. "You didn't put anything original or new into it, and therefore it wasn't YOUR soup. Food is only good when it comes from a person's soul, not when it's just a carbon-copy of somebody else's work! How many times do I have to tell you this before you finally get it through your thick skull?"

The boy was silent, shooting the old man a death glare.

"I said be quiet, old man," the boy said lowly, his hands shaking. "And my name's not 'eggplant'! It's Sanji! And one day i'll have my own shitty restaurant so you won't be able to boss me around anymore!"

I found myself grinning as I watched the boy speak. He was just like us, I thought. Same attitude, same ambition, same complete disregard for authority. Chuckling to myself, I decided. I liked this "Sanji," and when I liked someone, there was only one thing to do.

I was going to make him my friend.

**Fudge this was a long chapter! This literally took eight straight hours to write, it was so hard. At first I had no fucking clue how I was gonna introduce Sanji, but slowly, it came to me. Thanks so much for all of your guys' support and reviews. I promise that there will be more Sanji next chapter, so hang tight! I love ya! - Mikki**


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 12: Sanji's Best-in-the-world Cuisine**

Sanji stayed on my mind until I made my way back to the table and sat down, where I found that the food had already arrived and everyone was digging without me. I complained loudly, to which Zoro smacked me and told me to "shut up and eat."

I happily obliged.

The steak I had ordered was thick and steamy, making my mouth water by just looking at it. I completely disregarded the knife and the napkin next to my plate, and instead chose to spear the whole slab of meat with my fork and eat it barbarian style. Nami shot me a withering look but I ignored her. I hadn't been allowed to eat food like this in forever, so I was planning on enjoying it to the fullest. I bit into the meat and immediately my taste-buds died and went to heaven. It was perfectly cooked and seasoned, and fell apart easily in my mouth. By the time I swallowed, I was in tears. I quickly brushed them away

I saw Zoro roll his eyes at me. He picked up a napkin and waved it in front of my nose. "Wipe your face, idiot," he said, mouth half-full. "You're covered in shit." I ignored the napkin and instead chose to run my tongue thoroughly over my lips, wanting to get every last drop of steak juice. Zoro sighed and rubbed his temple, flicking the napkin so that it hit me in the face and fell into my lap. I tore off another chunk of meat from the steak and chewed with relish. It was the best thing I'd ever tasted in my life.

I looked up at my friends and saw that they, too, were enjoying their meals, everyone, including Zoro, wearing similar expressions of enjoyment. As I chewed, I wondered if the mustache old guy was the one who made our food. It'd been only him and the boy Sanji in the kitchen when I'd walked by, no other chefs or staff in sight, so I knew it couldn't have been anyone else. I was suddenly overcome with the desire to thank him for the meal. It was the least I could do for the person who had given me quite possibly the best dinner of my life, and I wanted another opportunity to see Sanji and ask him to be my friend.

Across the table, Nami reached down by her chair and brought up her backpack, setting it on her lap. She riffled through it for a while, and then withdrew her slim blue wallet. She counted the bills inside and frowned.

"What's wrong, Nami?" I asked, mouth half-full.

Nami looked at me, her frown deepening. "I'm not sure we have enough money to pay for our food," she said, worry creeping into her voice. "We barely have enough to pay for our return tickets as it is, and plus, it's starting to get late, so there's no way I'll be able to, uh, _acquire _more cash." She coughed into her hand and blushed slightly.

"Don't you mean _steal _more cash?" Zoro muttered under his breath. Nami glared at him and I heard a sickening crunch from under the table. Zoro let out a cry and fell off his chair, clutching at his injured foot. I laughed at him and Ussop joined me. "You... bitch..." Zoro gasped, glaring daggers at the orange-haired girl. Nami smirked, leaning her chin on her hand and snapping her wallet shut.

"Don't forget, Zoro," she said slyly. "You still owe me a ton of money, so unless you want me to raise your debt even further I suggest you not criticize my cash-gathering methods." Her smile turned evil and I giggled.

I looked out the window and saw that the snow was piling up quickly on the beach and over the town. There were at least six inches now, and the amount was only growing as the skies opened up and dumped layer after layer of fluffy white powder onto the earth. It was the most snow I had ever seen in my life and I grinned excitedly. When we got home, I wanted to build the biggest and most awesome snowman the world had ever seen.

As I thought about our inevitable return trip, I remembered my grandfather.

Shit.

I must've said it out loud because all my friends turned to me at once.

"What's the matter, Luffy?" Ussop said.

"Grandpa..." I whispered timidly. "And Ace... Oh, God, Nami, what time is it?" Everyone around the table paled. They too had obviously forgotten my intensely overprotective family. Nami quickly checked her watch and her eyes widened.

"It's a little after four..." she said, not looking up. "That, plus the hour and a half it'll probably take us to get back to your house from here..." she let out a long, but relieved, sigh. "Still gives us plenty of time to get you back to your house without the old man and that brother of yours realizing a thing." There was a chorus of tense breaths being released and we all slumped in our chairs. Grandpa and Ace wouldn't be back until at least ten.

I sighed and ran a hand through my hair. It was getting harder and harder to hide the existence of my friends from my family. Even though Ace wasn't the most observant of people, and Grandpa tended to ignore everything but what was directly in front of them, they had still been noticing things lately. A drawing of a skull and crossbones wearing a straw-hat pinned to the wall above my bed. Tangerine peels trailing down the hallway and into the kitchen. Blankets laid out on the back deck with wrinkles and snack wrappers on them (I had gotten yelled at for the last one).

It terrified me that if they knew, they wouldn't let me see Zoro, Nami, or Ussop anymore.

I shook my head and pushed the thoughts out of my mind. Across the table, Ussop and Nami were debating about how they were planning on paying the bill _and _the cost of train tickets. Their conversation was boring so I tuned it out, and instead flashed Zoro one of my trademark grins. I had completely demolished my steak some time ago, and my keen eyes had detected that there was still food on my best friend's plate, in need of eating. Zoro raised an eyebrow suspiciously at me and crossed his arms. He saw where my gaze was directed and sighed.

"Fine," he said dramatically. "Just don't eat too fast or you'll get sick." He pushed his unfinished plate towards me and I grinned triumphantly. I wolfed down the potatoes and flakes of fish, savoring each bite and letting the amazing flavors caress my tongue. Zoro's food was just as good as mine, and I had to stop myself from licking the plate clean lest I be smacked by Nami for being gross. I once again had the urge to thank whoever made the food. If it was the mustache old guy, then I knew where to find him. I was two seconds away from hopping down from my chair to head towards the kitchen when Ussop's voice cut into my thoughts.

"What are we going to do about this, Luffy?" He whined, holding up Nami's wallet and pouting. "We barely have enough money to get home, how are we gonna afford this meal?" I frowned and tilted my head to the side.

"Dunno," I said, crossing my arms. "If we don't have enough, then I guess we'll just have to pay them with something else." I thought for a moment, and then an idea came to me. I pounded my fist against my palm and grinned. "I know! We can just leave them an I.O.U with all our signatures! That way we can pay them back next time we come here!" Three different fists slammed into my skull at once.

"It doesn't work like that, dumb ass," Zoro growled next to me. "If it did, then we would've left by now." I frowned and was about to reply, when another great idea came to me, one that would allow me to accomplish two goals at the same time.

I grinned and hopped out of my chair. "And just where do you think you're going?" I heard Nami say behind me.

"Field trip," I said simply, turning my head and smiling. Nami frowned skeptically and I laughed. I turned and began walking away towards the hallway where the bathroom and the kitchen were. "I'll be back in a bit." I reached over my shoulder and fixed my hat on my head. As I approached the kitchen, I heard two familiar voices resounding off the walls, angry and venom-filled. There was a crash from behind the double-doors and I smelled something delicious wafting through the air.

"You stupid old fart!" The younger of the voices yelled. "The one time I do something nice for you and this is the thanks I get!" There was a loud crash that sounded like plates shattering.

"Something nice?" Cried the older voice. "You call almost poisoning valued customers 'something nice?' I shut my eyes for one second, and all of a sudden you think you're capable of making and selling decent food that I haven't even approved? You stupid eggplant!" Another crash, followed by a volley of violent swears that could make even a sailor blush.

I gulped and steeled myself to open the doors. Whatever was going on in there, it was intense, and I needed to be prepared. I took one last breath and pushed open the doors, heat from the ovens and stovetops burning my cheeks and making my eyes go wide.

* * *

"Old man, I need a job!" I cried, placing my hands on my hips and sporting a determined frown on my lips. In front of me, the old cook with the awesome mustache stopped what he was doing and stared. The blond-haired boy standing next to him did the same. In his hand, he wielded what appeared to be some kind of spaghetti strainer, his arm raised like he was about to strike something. The boy, Sanji, was holding a thick rolling pin in front of himself like a shield. The two looked at me like I was the weirdest thing they had ever seen in their lives.

"Excuse me?" The old man said after a few long moments.

"I said I need a job!" I cried again, a smirk breaking out on my face. "My friends and I can't pay our bill, so I need a job to work it off. We have a train to catch, so I'd like it better if it was something easy that didn't take too long. So please," I took a step forward and held out my hand. "Let me work here so that my friends and I can leave."

The man stood in stunned silence, staring at me with his mouth half open and his arm still raised. His long mustache twitched and he frowned. He took a deep breath.

"What the hell are you talking about, you little eggplant!?" He cried, a vein popping in his head. I chose not to react at all to his outburst, and instead crossed my arms. "My kitchen isn't some playground for little brats who can't pay their bill, so get the hell out! What made you think I'd ever give you a job in the first place!?" The man glared down at me menacingly and took a few steps forward. Although he had lowered his weapon so that it hung at his side, it was still intimidating. Despite this, I stood firm, returning the man's angry gaze full force.

"I already told you, mustache-guy!" I said stubbornly. Off to the side, I heard Sanji snicker. "Unless you want us to book it out of here without paying you anything, you have to give me a job! And hurry! Gramps'll kill me if I'm not home by ten!" I kept my voice steady and I didn't step back even an inch. The old man snorted and leaned down so that we were face to face.

"You got some balls, brat," he growled. "Walking into _my _kitchen and demanding work. Didn't your parents ever teach you any manners?"

I tilted my head to the side in confusion. "Don't have parents," I said. "And besides, _they're_ not the ones asking you for a job right now, I am." The old man's eyes widened slightly, and I swear I saw his gaze soften a fraction.

The two of us stared each other down for a few long moments, his dark brown eyes peering deep into my black ones. It seemed like he was searching for something the way his pupils darted from side to side, taking in every aspect of my face. At last, he let out a long exasperated sigh. He stood up to his full height and looked down at me, placing his hands firmly on his hips.

"Alright," he said after a moment. "If you want work that badly, then I'll give you work. But I warn you, brat, I'm not gonna go easy on you." Immediately an insanely wide grin split my face. I jumped into the air and gave a loud "yahoo", pumping my fist as I did.

"Thanks mustache old guy!" I said excitedly. "Now my friends and I don't have to eat and run, _and_ we can pay for train tickets back home! Really, thanks a lot!" I jumped again the old man sighed, rubbing his temple.

"Don't get too excited," he growled. "I'm gonna work you non-stop until you earn enough to pay for whatever it is you ordered." He walked over to the wall and slipped a short grey apron off the row of hanging hooks nailed there. He threw it at my face and I caught it. "Put that on and then I'll send you off with Sanji. And the name's Zeff, you little shit, not 'mustache old guy.'" I laughed and nodded my head excitedly, quickly tying the slightly damp cloth around my middle. Even though it was obviously made for a kid, it was still big on me, and fell way past my knees and almost to the floor. Zeff muttered something under his breath and turned to Sanji, who was still snickering in the background. "Take him and start washing those dishes," he grumbled, waving his hand towards a sink a little ways away.

My intuition told me that, normally, Sanji would have yelled some sort of obscenity at the old cook for ordering him around like that. Right then, however, the smile on the boy's face prevented him from doing anything other than simply nodding and walking over to me. "Fine, fine," he said, smirking. He looked at me and seemed almost... impressed? "C'mon, kid, let's go to work." He jabbed his thumb at the waiting pile of dirty dishes.

I grinned. "Yes sir!" I said. Sanji turned and I followed him to the sink. He brought out two stools for us to stand on (due to the fact that both of us were too short to see fully over the counter) and rolled up his sleeves. I followed his example and together we set to work washing and drying the mountain of plates before us. After a few minutes of silence, Sanji snorted and began to crack up. He leaned his head back and laughed loudly, soapy hands clutching his stomach. I stared at him and then a smile split my face. "What's so funny?" I asked.

"You're... just so..." Sanji stuttered between laughs. "Freaking... _hilarious! _I haven't seen the old fart that put-off in forever. All I can do is rile him up until he explodes. What's your name?"

I grinned and held out a dripping wet hand. "Monkey D. Luffy," I said. Sanji took my hand and returned my smile.

"Sanji," he said. "My name's Sanji. I guess you could call me the shitty old fart's apprentice or something."

"Wow, so you're like, a chef-in-training?" I said.

"Not in training," Sanji said indignantly. "Contrary to everything that geezer says, I'm a real chef. He's been working me half to death almost my whole life, pounding each and every single thing he knows about food into my brain, and _still _he says I'm not good enough. What's with that? If anything, I'm _better _than shitty old Zeff. His taste-buds are so ancient I'm surprised his tongue hasn't fallen out of his head by now." Sanji sighed and I chuckled. Despite everything the boy said, I could tell that he really loved the old man, crustiness and all. The way that he and Zeff were reminded me a lot of Grandpa and Ace. They were constantly fighting, and yet underneath it all, there was something bright and warm that proved they were family, and could never _really _hurt each other.

It was something I missed.

"Was that why you were fighting before?" I asked, absentmindedly letting a plate slip out from my hands and shatter on the bottom of the sink.

Sanji took no notice. "Yes and no," he said, his voice irritated. "He was angry because I had the nerve to service some customers while he was busy napping on the job. He said I had 'no right to defile _his _kitchen with my shit cooking.' Easy for him to say, he hardly tries any of the food I make, so how would he know if it's good or not?" Something he said caught my attention.

"Wait, you mean the food the scary waiter brought us... was made by _you_?" I said in disbelief. Another plate dropped from my hands and broke, this time getting noticed by Sanji.

"Hey, you shit-head, how many plates have you broken!?" He cried, staring morbidly at the tiny pile of watery broken glass in my half of the sink.

"I don't know, nobody told me I was supposed to count!" I cried, throwing my hands up and splashing soapy water all over Sanji. He looked pissed and was about to yell something at me when I interrupted him. "That's not the point! Were you the one who made that amazing steak I had? Yes or no!?" I shoved my face into his and he flinched.

"I guess," he said cautiously, pushing me back and causing me to wobble on my stool. "I made four things, and Patty came and got them. We haven't had any orders all day, so I wanted to test my skills. And don't get so close to me, it's disgusting!"

"Wow..." I whispered, awestruck. "Wow, wow, wow! That's amazing, Sanji! You really made all that stuff? By yourself? That's incredible!" I threw my hands in the air again and grinned widely. Now I definitely wanted Sanji to be my friend. Anyone with good taste in food, or who just liked food in general, was alright by me. "That was the best lunch I've ever had in my life! You're awesome, Sanji!"

The boy looked stunned, not knowing how to react to the sudden rush of praise he was receiving. Slowly, an embarrassed blush crossed his cheeks and he stared down at the dishes he was fumbling with, the plates in front of me all but forgotten. His blond bangs covered both of his eyes now, and I laughed at him. Before I could react, the stool I was standing on was kicked out from under my feet and I went sprawling onto the ground. I landed on my backside and giggled, Sanji's violence quickly becoming a natural occurrence.

"I mean it, you're awesome!" I managed between giggles. "I've never had food as good as yours, you should make it more often!" The boy was quiet and I smirked.

I looked up at Sanji and saw that his face was bright red. "Shut up," he muttered under his breath. He began to scrub at the dishes intensely, like he was trying desperately to distract himself from my idiocy, an act I'd seen Zoro do many times in the months I'd known him. I grinned and picked myself up off the floor. Although the old chef was nowhere in sight, I knew that if he came in and found me slacking off when I's so fervently begged for a job, I'd be feeling it tomorrow.

I repositioned the stool and set to work scraping up the plate fragments in my half of the sink. I almost missed what Sanji said next.

"...Thanks," he muttered, not looking up. "I'm glad you liked it." I looked at him from the corner of my eye and smiled softly. He was just like all of us, not good at expressing his emotions, and yet terribly heartfelt. I wondered how many times he'd been praised for his cooking in his life, figuring that with a guardian like Zeff, it probably wasn't often. I realized that Sanji probably never had anyone tell him how good his food was to his face, always having to go by self evaluation and things he'd heard from Zeff. It made me sad.

I turned to Sanji and saw that the red on his face was slowly fading away to a dull pink. He still wouldn't look at me, but I could tell he was grateful. "Hey, Sanji," I said after a little while.

"What is it, Luffy?" He sounded tired and shot a quick glance in my direction.

I chuckled slightly, which caused him to look up completely and meet my eyes.

"Be my friend." I said. His eyes widened and he stopped what he was doing.

It wasn't a question.

**Oh my God, it's been a long time guys. I am sooooooooo sorry for the slow update. I've been going through some family stuff lately, but now, I'm back in the game! I hope you like this chapter, it may be a little dull, but I promise, things'll get spicy next chapter! Until then! - Mikki**


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 13: Passing and Failing**

Time seemed to slow as Sanji took in my question.

"Excuse me?" He said after awhile, his hands pausing over the last dish left in his side of the sink. "What'd you just say?"

I grinned and chuckled. "Be my friend, Sanji!" I said again. The boy's eyes widened and the dish in his hands slipped and cracked on the bottom of the sink. He swore loudly and quickly moved to scrape up the pieces before anyone saw. He ended up just dumping them onto my growing pile of shattered plates and wiping his soapy hands on the front of his apron, which I didn't really care about seeing as I had already destroyed more than enough plates to warrant a scolding.

Sanji coughed into his hand and jumped down from his stool.

"Sorry, kid, no can do," he said slowly with his back turned to me.

"What?" I said, tilting my head to the side. "Why not? Being friends is fun."

Sanji shook his head sadly. "You don't get it, kid-"

"Luffy." I corrected.

"Okay, _Luffy," _Sanji said with an exasperated sigh, turning back to face me. "I'm sorry, but I can't be friends with you. I've got a lot of things I want to accomplish, and having friends would just get in the way. Unfortunately, that's just the way it is right now for me, it's nothing personal. And besides, you wouldn't want me for a friend anyway. I'm not exactly what you would call _normal._" His eyes drifted to the floor and for a moment I thought I saw sadness flash there.

A smile bubbled up on my lips and I laughed, hopping down from my stool and wiping my hands on my apron. I had cut myself piling up broken plates, and a bright red smear ran down my front. Sanji frowned.

"What's so funny?" He growled, folding his arms.

"Being normal!" I said cheerfully. "Normal is boring! I like people who're strange, like me, you, Zoro, Nami, and Ussop!" I placed my hands on my hips and laughed at Sanji's baffled expression. The boy sighed deeply and rubbed the back of his head, looking much more tired than a kid his age should. Upon closer inspection, I saw that there were large dark circles beneath Sanji's eyes, like he hadn't slept in a long time.

The boy raised a curly eyebrow. "You know you just called yourself strange, right?" He said. "You, and like three other people."

"Yup!" I said happily, nodding my head. "You know, all my friends are really interesting! Not one of them is 'normal,' like you said, and that's what makes them so fun!" I reached out and grabbed Sanji's sleeve, flashing him my widest grin. "You're the same, right? So we should be friends!"

Sanji shook his head. "Look, Luffy, I already said I refuse! There's nothing you can do to change my mind and that's final."

"No!" I yelled, puffing out my cheek stubbornly. "I refuse your refusal! And there's nothing you can do to change my mind either, so ha!" My grip on his sleeve tightened and he began to look annoyed. In his eyes however, there was something new, something bright that was either unbridled anger or... glittering hope? The emotion was new so I wasn't sure. Sanji opened his mouth to speak, most likely to yell something back at me, but was interrupted by the double-doors slamming open and three _very _angry shouts resounding throughout the room.

"LUFFY!"

I blanched, nervous sweat beading on my face. I didn't want to turn around for fear of the sight that was waiting for me, and in front of me, Sanji just looked confused. I glanced up at the clock on the wall and saw that I'd been gone from the dining room for well over forty-five minutes, more than enough time for my friends to start to worry about my absence, and the thought of being yelled at by Nami flashed through my mind, making me shiver.

Sanji craned his neck to see the three figures behind me, and I wanted to tell him to run and hide. Chances were that if I was going to get a scolding, then he was too. I gulped and turned my head. Sure enough, there were my friends, standing just in front of the double-doors with three very similar expressions of annoyance on their faces. Zoro had his arms crossed, and that was never a good thing.

"H-Hey, guys," I said meekly, a nervous smile playing on my lips. "What's up?" A vein twitched in Nami's temple.

"What's up?" She said lowly. "What's UP!? You suddenly disappear on us for the better part of an hour and you have the nerve to ask us WHAT'S UP!?" She strode towards me and slammed her fist against my head. I cried out and fell to the floor, clutching the welt with my hands and cowering before the girl's rage. Nami was the scariest person I knew, narrowly beating out Grandpa in terms of dominance and terror.

The last thing I wanted was to get beaten up by her when all I'd been trying to do was help.

"Yeah, Luffy, what were you thinking?" Ussop chimed, frowning down at me and putting his hands on his hips. "You can't just take off like that and not expect us to worry! We thought you'd already left, and THEN where would we be?" He sighed deeply and rubbed his forehead. I was about to answer him when suddenly Zoro's knuckles collided with my temple, the same spot where Nami had hit me moments before, sending new waves of pain through my brain.

"Ouch! That HURT!" I cried, glaring up at Zoro. He frowned deeply and kept his arms crossed, simply staring down at me with both anger and relief swimming in his gaze. I briefly felt a pang of shame run through me. Even though I'd only been out of sight for a little while, he'd still been worried about me. I guess with the unpredictability of my illness, that was understandable. It didn't change the fact that I was getting beaten up for trying to help us get home, though, which irritated me.

Zoro looked like he was about to say something, when suddenly, his eyes darted to where Sanji was standing a little ways away, frozen in place. The blond-haired boy had a look of what I could only describe as _horror_ on his face, and his gaze was directed at neither Zoro nor myself. I frowned and looked up at him, wondering what it was he was staring at so fearfully.

"What's his problem?" Zoro said gruffly, offering me a hand. I took it and stood.

"Dunno," I said, staring at Sanji. His visible eye was wide and his face was pale. I followed his line of sight and saw that he was staring directly at Nami, who was still glaring angrily at me with her arms crossed over her chest. I tilted my head to the side. "Sanji?" I asked.

Ussop and Nami looked at the boy as if noticing him for the first time, and, upon seeing his puzzling expression, frowned. Zoro raised an eyebrow and grunted. "Who the hell're you?" He asked gruffly. The boy didn't answer, just kept gazing intently at Nami. It was starting to creep me out, so I made a move to grab Sanji's arm and shake him, only for him to take several tenuous steps away from us.

Suddenly, his face turned beet red, his cheeks flaring up like he had suddenly been set on fire from the inside. He raised a finger and pointed at Nami, making her frown deepen. "Wh-wh-wh-" he began breathily. "Wh-why... the hell... is there a GIRL... in my kitchen!?"

It seemed as though all of the air had been sucked from the room. Ussop, Nami, Zoro, and I all gaped at the blond-haired boy, not knowing what to say.

"...Huh?" We all said at the same time. Sanji's blush deepened even further, if that was even possible, and he retreated behind the counter like it was some sort of barricade against whatever he was afraid of.

I hazarded a glance in Nami's direction and saw that her expression was as black as hell, her eyes glinting murderously and a furious smile playing at the corners of her mouth. "Excuse me?" She said dangerously, stepping forward. "What did you just say? You got a lot of nerve, saying that to someone you haven't even met yet, kid." All of the boys in the room gulped. The aura she was giving off was nothing short of evil, pure and simple, and caused shivers to run up my spine.

I cast Sanji a sympathetic glance. Whatever kind of problem he had with Nami, gender-related or otherwise, to me, it wasn't worth the pounding he was sure to receive now that he had angered the orange-haired girl. I wanted him to apologize, but judging from his lack of movement and facial expression, I could tell that wasn't going to happen.

Everyone waited for someone to say something, anything, to break the tense atmosphere. At last, Sanji cleared his throat.

His face had cooled down some and he rubbed his mouth nervously, like he was thinking about what to say next. "Y-you heard me," he said, not meeting Nami's eyes. "I asked what the hell a GIRL thought she was doing in MY kitchen?" I heard a vein pop in Nami's temple. Beside me, Zoro was repressing a snicker. Ussop was glancing frantically between the two, as if trying to gauge how long it would take Nami to rip the boy's face off from her current distance.

"Oh, I'm sorry," Nami said venomously. "I wasn't aware that this was a _boy-only_ kitchen. I'm SO sorry for intruding!" It was then that Nami took a step forward so that she was within striking distance of Sanji. I panicked. There was no way in hell the boy could be my friend if I let Nami kill him.

I quickly stepped between the two, holding out my arms with the hope of protecting Sanji from Nami's seething rage. "Wait, Nami!" I cried. "You can't hurt him! I've already asked him to be my friend! He can't do that if he's dead!"

"Shut it, Luffy!" The girl spat, lashing out and gripping the front of my shirt. "This kid's asking for it! And besides, there's no way I'd ever let him be your friend, just look at him!" She whipped her head around to glare at Zoro, who was standing with his arms crossed watching the whole exchange with interest. "Back me up, Zoro!"

"Wait a second, girl, just wha-!" Sanji didn't have time to finish what he was about to say before Zoro stepped in.

"Oh, I definitely agree," he said casually, fixing Sanji with a dry stare. "This one looks like nothing more than a pathetic little cream puff to me." Zoro paused to scratch his head. I felt the searing heat of Sanji's glare on my back. "There's no way in hell I'll pass him." I hesitantly turned my head to look at Sanji, only to find that his face had turned from red in embarrassment, to crimson in anger.

I was going to say something, but was pushed roughly out of the way by the blond-haired boy so that he was standing directly in front of Nami and Zoro. A vein twitched on his temple, and I felt raw irritation rolling off him in waves. "You got some balls, moss-head," Sanji growled, his tone surprisingly even. "Talking to me like that in MY kitchen."

Zoro stiffened. "What'd you just call me, cream puff?" He said dangerously, taking a small step forward. Nami saw the tension between the two and quickly retreated behind Ussop's quivering form in the corner, muttering a quiet "get him Zoro" as she went. I stood frozen in place, unsure of what to do.

Sanji sighed dramatically, rubbing his temple with his thumb. "You got plants in your ears too? I called you moss-head, moss-head. Or do I need to repeat it? Well, I guess it can't be helped, you do hang around with some rather slow-witted people." He shot a withering glance in my direction, to which I responded with a large smile, not understanding the implication. Zoro clenched his fists.

"Well now, curly-brow, you DO have some bite to you," he sneered. "I guess you're not as much of a cream puff as I originally thought. Then again, you do work in a _kitchen _for godsake, so you can't be _that _much of a man. No real man would ever waste his time making fancy little appetizers." Zoro crossed his arms and smirked. "Unless you're actually just a scared little girl."

That was when Sanji finally lost his cool. "SHUT YOUR FACE, STUPID MOSS-BRAIN!" He cried, clenching his fists so tightly that his knuckles turned white. "You have no idea what the hell you're saying, so just shut up! Being a chef takes years of hard work and dedication, not to mention skills that the likes of _you _could never possess in a million years! I bet you couldn't tell the difference between salt and pepper if you tried!"

"YOU'RE JUST BEGGING FOR AN ASS-WOOPING, AREN'T YOU, YOU FUCKING SWIRLS!" Zoro yelled, also loosing his temper.

"BRING IT ON, MARIMO! I'LL TAKE YOU ON ANYTIME, ANYWHERE!" Sanji retorted. The two of them got so close together that their foreheads collided, making a sound that was almost like a thunderclap. The next thing I knew, the two boys were trading blows, limbs flying about in every direction and a long and varied stream of curse words resounding through the room. Sanji was kicking and punching like there was no tomorrow, while Zoro had somehow gotten his hands on a broom and was wielding it like a blade.

"Kick his ass, Zoro!" I heard Nami yell.

The fight went on for a few minutes, both boys sustaining bloody noses and ripped clothing. I stood transfixed, watching their battle as a grin slowly creeping onto my face. I knew that Zoro was strong, I could tell by the way he carried himself when he walked and the way he always carried a switchblade wherever he went, but until then, I had never seen him actually engaged in a fight before. It was cool, like watching two cats brawl over a scrap of meat. That, and Sanji was giving Zoro a run for his money.

I couldn't stop the excited laughter that bubbled up from my lips. It was more fun than I'd had in a while.

Ussop and Nami heard my laughter and looked at me with annoyed expressions. "You're actually _enjoying_ this?" They chorused.

"Of course I am!" I said, trying to contain my giggles. "This is so much fun! Sanji's gonna be my friend, so now is a good opportunity to test his strength. Oooooh, I wonder who's gonna win?" I practically sung the last part, leaning over the two writhing boys to get a better look.

Nami sighed and walked over to me, sidestepping the brawl. "Are you still on about that?" She asked, folding her arms. "I told you already, I won't allow it. If we let the kid join our little circle the only thing he'd do would be cause trouble and try to murder Zoro. That, and little bastard has no respect for women's rights whatsoever!"

"THAT"S WRONG!" Came the sudden cry from the floor. All eyes darted to where the two boys had ceased their struggle, Sanji clutching a fistful of Zoro's hair and Zoro biting down hard on Sanji's arm. They were in disarray, clothes hanging half-off and blood dripping all down their fronts. I wanted to laugh, but the sudden silence prevented me from doing so.

Nami stared at Sanji. "... What?" She asked after a moment. "What did you just say?"

The violent blush returned to Sanji's cheeks and he scrambled to get up from the floor, releasing Zoro as he went. The green haired boy looked like he still wanted to gut the young chef where he stood, but kept quiet and merely grunted as he stood up, dusting himself off.

"U-um... that is... well I..." Sanji struggled to form words as he turned to face Nami, not looking her in the eye. "Wh-what I mean is... is that... a girl should... should never be in the..." he cleared his throat awkwardly. "Th-the kitchen." He muttered the last part so that all of us could barely hear it. As soon as the words left his mouth, however, Nami's rage was re-ignited, and she made a move to punch him.

Sanji's blush deepened to an impossible color. "Because a m-man should n-never let his woman work. All g-girls are p-p-p-princesses, and... and need to be t-t-treated as such." Nami stopped what she was doing and stared, all traces of anger draining from her face.

"Is that what you think...?" She asked, almost wonderingly. "So then you, earlier...?" There was a long pause.

Sanji nodded.

Nami gave a loud 'pfft' and started to laugh madly, tilting her head back and clutching her stomach with the force of her giggles. At first, I wasn't quite sure what she was laughing at, but eventually, I joined just for the heck of it. The other three in the room looked at us like we had gone insane, and as we laughed tears formed in our eyes and fell to the floor with a splash.

Sanji looked up from the floor with wide eyes.

At last, Nami wiped away the last of her tears and met his gaze, a small, gentle smile on her face. I poked Nami in the ribs with my elbow and gave her a sly grin. "I told you he was fun!" I said. "So, can he be my friend now?"

Nami put her hand on her chin and made a "hmmmm" sound like she was thinking. "Well," she said. "Let's see. He's awkward, shy, clearly a loner, and extremely rude." Sanji flinched at her criticisms but kept his gaze on her face. "But... he's also a _gentlemen._ What the hell, I'll pass him. He can be your friend if you want, Luffy."

I leaped into the air. "YAY! Thanks, Nami!" I cried happily, slinging an arm around her shoulders and kicking up my legs. Nami looked both annoyed and affectionate at the same time and made no move to push me off. In front of us, Sanji looked confused.

He blinked a couple times, and then frowned. "Now wait just a second!" He yelled, jabbing a slim finger into my chest. "Didn't I already tell you that I WASN'T going to be friends with you? I'm pretty sure I was expressly clear when addressing that fact! And what the hell is with this whole 'pass/fail' thing, anyway? I don't get you people!" I grinned at him and put a hand on his shoulder.

"You don't have to get it," I said happily. "It just is what it is!"

"Ain't that the truth," Ussop muttered from the corner where he still stood. He stepped out and looked Sanji up and down, his arms crossed over his chest. After a moment, he sighed. "Sorry, Luffy, I just don't see it. I mean, what's so special about him that would make me want to pass him? We already have one violent knuckle-head-" he jabbed a thumb at Zoro, who growled in response. "-so we most definitely do NOT need another one."

"Oi," Sanji said, offended.

I frowned, thinking. To other people, it may have seemed ridiculous that I had to approve my possible friends with existing ones, but to me it was totally reasonable. I wanted Ussop to like Sanji, because if he didn't, it would make things a lot more complicated. I wondered what I could say to change the long-nosed boy's mind, and then it suddenly came to me. "OH!" I cried, pounding my fist against my hand. "Remember that food we had? Sanji was the one who made it!"

Ussop'd eyes widened. "Seriously!?" He said in disbelief. "You mean he was the chef who cooked all that delicious stuff? No way! That's incredible!" He paused for a moment and scrunched up his face like he was thinking. At last, he nodded to himself. "Alright, alright. If that's the case, then I guess I can pass him. But only if he promises to make more of that beef stew whatever he made before. That shit's delicious." Ussop grinned at me and gave me a thumbs up.

"Awesome!" I said, fist pumping. "That means that only Zoro's left!" I turned to my friend who was rubbing his shoulder and grimacing. "What do you say, Zoro?"

"No way in hell." The boy responded automatically, causing my smile to fall.

"What? Why not?" I whined in dismay.

"Several reasons." Zoro said, wiping blood from under his nose. "Primarily because he's an asshole and I don't like him, but also because I don't trust him. End of story."

"Aw, Zoro!" I said walking over to him and putting on my best pouty face. "C'mon, he's not _that _bad! And he cooks really good food! Shouldn't that be enough?"

Zoro groaned and crossed his arms. "Damn it, Luffy, food isn't everything you know. Character counts too. And from what I've seen, this shitty cook had none of it."

"WHAT WAS THAT YOU DAMN MARIMO!?" Sanji roared. "IF YOU WANNA FIGHT AGAIN, JUST SAY IT!"

"BRING IT ON BITCH! I'LL KICK YOUR ASS ANYTIME!"

Just then, the doors to the kitchen slammed open. "WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON IN HERE!?" All eyes turned to the figure of Zeff looming in the doorway, a furious scowl playing on his lips. In one hand he gripped a ladle like a bat, and all at once everyone in the room grew still and quiet. "I swear to god, I can hear you brats all the way from the front of the store! Don't you know it's bad for business to have screams echoing all throughout the damn place!?"

I heard Sanji mutter something under his breath that sounded mysteriously like "shitty old geezer."

Zeff sighed and stroked his mustache, his frown relaxing so that it was more irritated than angry. Everyone shifted uncomfortably on their feet, like children caught with their hands in the cookie jar. "I swear, who told all you brats you could do whatever the hell you wanted in _my _restaurant?" He closed the door and walked over to us, placing his large leathery hands on his hips. "Well? Would someone care to explain?" He shot a glare at me. "Waiter boy?"

I laughed nervously. "Well, my friends were wondering where I went, so they came back here," I said. "But then they met Sanji, and he and Zoro started beating each other up! I did my job though, so it shouldn't be a problem that we can't pay anymore, right?" I smiled up at the man and he let loose another deep sigh.

He glanced over at the sink where Sanji and I had washed our dishes and saw the pile of broken plates at the bottom. From his expression, I could tell he wasn't expecting anything else. "I don't care about that anymore, brat," Zeff said tiredly. "And Sanji, what do you think you're doing fighting in the kitchen?" He glanced over at Zoro, and then looked back at the young cook. "It doesn't even look like you kicked his ass."

Ussop and Nami snickered while both Sanji and Zoro adopted expressions of annoyance. I let an easy smile form on my lips at the exchange. "So, does that mean we're free to go then?" I asked hopefully.

"Yeah, yeah, you can leave." Said Zeff. "Or rather, get the hell out. You're giving me a headache." I grinned and laughed, making all of my friends sweat-drop.

"Thanks a lot, mustache old guy!" I said. I turned to look at Sanji, who I saw smirk. "I'll be back again, Sanji! And I'm definitely going to make you my friend! No matter what it takes!"

"Oh Joy." I heard Zoro mutter.

Sanji sighed and rubbed the back of his head. "You just don't know when to quit, now do you?" He said. "Fine, fine, you can try as many times as you like. It's not going to change anything. I have my own reasons for doing things, and friends would just get in the way. But I'm guessing you don't really care about that, do you?"

"Not at all!" I said cheerfully.

Behind me, Nami cleared her throat. "Well then," she said, making everyone look at her. "I guess we'll take our leave then. It's already getting pretty late, so we should be heading back home anyway. C'mon guys, let's go." She walked to the door with Ussop and Zoro trailing behind her. After a moment of intense staring between me and Sanji, I followed. Zeff huffed and kept his arms crossed as he watched us go, a strange glint in his eye that didn't match his gruff exterior. Nami pushed open the door and turned back. "We'll see you later then, Sanji-kun," she said with a wink.

Sanji's face lit up like a sunset. "Stupid!" He cried. "Don't c-call me that l-like were all buddy-buddy! I'm NOT your friend, okay?" Zeff chuckled to himself and Zoro rolled his eyes.

"Sure you're not," Nami said with a sly grin. She walked out into the hall and we all followed her, trailing behind like loyal dogs. We always let Nami lead the way whenever we went someplace because the orange-haired girl never seemed to get lost. Zoro, on the other hand, prided himself on his ability to not even be able to walk in a straight line.

As we made it to the front door of the restaurant where we came in, I was surprised with what I saw. The snow outside had picked up, and the entire world was now cloaked in a dense blanket of white powder, with more piling on top every second. We had only been inside for a little over an two hours, and already the landscape had changed so drastically. I couldn't help the wondering smile that spread across my face at the sight.

"Wow! Look how much there is!" I said excitedly. "There's enough snow out there to make, like, a MILLION snowmen!"

"We could make more than that, maybe even TEN MILLION!" Said Ussop with the same enthusiasm. We turned to each other and shared a conspiratorial grin, Zoro standing stoically off to the side. Unlike us, he wasn't affected by the sight of the freshly fallen snow, though I knew once we started playing in it, he would crack and join in just like all the other times.

"Aw crap," said Nami, frowning.

"What's the matter, Nami?" Ussop and I chorused.

Nami scratched the back of her head and frowned deeply at the snow. "Just look, idiot, there's snow _everywhere!_"

"So?"

"_So, _it'll make it that much harder for us to walk all the way to the train station. Snow's a bitch when it comes to transportation. If it comes down any harder, I'm worried that the train will shut down and we'll stuck here until they get it working again. What do we do...?" She put her hand on her chin and frowned worriedly.

At the thought of being trapped in a strange town with nowhere to stay, the rest of us frowned as well. There was a tense silence, interrupted only by the sound of the gray waves on either side of the boardwalk lapping against the shore.

"Well, we'll just have to risk the walk then." Zoro said after awhile. Nami looked at him incredulously and he shrugged. "It's better than finding some hole to hunker down in for the night because we never found out if the train could move. Chances are, it's still working. The snow's not _that _heavy yet so I doubt they've closed the station. We can still try."

Ussop and I gasped dramatically. "Zoro just had a good idea!" I cried.

"This is bad! The world must be ending!" Yelled Ussop.

"SHUT UP!" Zoro said, glaring at us with a vein twitching on his temple.

Nami sighed and casually slammed a fist into each of our head, effectively shutting us up. "In any case, Zoro's right," she said, the three of us nursing the fresh bumps on our heads. "It's better that we try and fail then never try at all. Now that that's settle, let's get going." She turned to me and her expression became slightly concerned. "You okay, Luffy? It's pretty cold out there and you're not wearing much..."

"I'm fine!" I said, smiling. "I can make it to the train station, so you don't have to worry. I've been feeling fine all day."

Ussop and Zoro shared a look, but I ignored it. Truly, my chest was beginning to ache slightly, like it did whenever I did anything physical for a long period of time. I woudl never show it though. All it would do was worry was worry my friends and cause them to fuss over me, which was the last thing I wanted. Silently, Zoro slid the scarf off from around his neck and handed it to me, his face unreadable. I stared at it, and then took it with a small "thanks."

Nami looked doubtful, but resigned herself to the facts and sighed. "Alright, but if you fell anything, and I mean _anything, _you tell us straight away and we'll stop. Promise?"

"Promise." I said with a nod.

"Okay then. Everyone, let's go." With that, Nami pushed open the door, and we were greeted by a fierce icy wind that stung our faces and whipped our hair violently about. I felt my hat slipping, and so I put a firm hand on it to keep it from blowing away. Nami went first and pushed her way out into the blizzard with her gloved hand shielding her face from the wind. Second was Ussop, followed by me, and then Zoro who brought up the rear.

The air was biting, and almost right away my teeth began to chatter, a fierce chill overtaking my body. I had always been susceptible to the cold, and now, that weakness was coming back to haunt me as shivers ran up and down my spine. My breaths came in sharp gasps, and my feet were buried almost calf-deep in powdery snow. I felt Zoro place his warm hand on my shoulder, both to steady and to guide me through the storm.

I wondered how much longer it would take before we reached the train station.

As we walked along the boardwalk, I saw large gray waves rising up over the sides, like the steely backs of dragons ready to pounce. I couldn't swim, so the sight sent waves of unease through me. I slowed my step so that Zoro and I walked closer together, his presence warms and comforting as the snow whipped at my face and the dragons howled for blood. It was turning into a blizzard.

"How are you doing, Luffy?" I heard Ussop call from up ahead.

I was about to shout "I'm fine" back at him, when a large gust of wind surged over me, blowing my precious straw-hat right off my head and into the frigid air. Immediately, I turned around and reached for it, knocking Zoro's hand off my shoulder and spraying snow into the wind from my feet. Time seemed to slow down. I could see my hat floating a little ways away, and I stretched out my hand as far as I could to get to it.

I briefly heard Zoro shout my name.

I ignored him because all that mattered at that moment was my hat. My treasure. The only thing left of the dreams that had all but dissipated since I'd contracted my disease. If I lost it, there was nothing left of the old me. The me whose horizon was so wide with possibility that you couldn't see the end of it.

As I desperately grabbed for my hat, I didn't realize how close to the edge of the boardwalk I was becoming. I took a few more slow-motion steps, reaching out with my fully extended fingers, and at last I felt the familiar brush of cold straw against my palm. Relief surged through me, but it was short lived as I realized where I was. Looking down, I saw nothing but dark waves. I had been so focused on my hat, that I completely ignored where I was.

I was leaning over the side with nothing to pull me backwards.

And I fell.

As soon as the cold water hit me, all of the breath left my body. I found myself completely paralyzed by the intense cold that was surging through me, and thus I was unable to even thrash about beneath the stony waters. It felt like I had been submerged in a container of ice. The current pulled me down until my lungs were burning for air, and every time I tried to open my eyes the saltwater seared them, and I was forced to keep them shut tight.

Water _poured_ into my mouth and nose, rushing into my throat and making me choke. I was completely at the mercy of the winter sea, a simple body among giants whose sole purpose was to tear me apart.

I wondered if I was going to die.

At once, my mind fought against that thought, screaming at the possibility that I would die any other way that through my sickness. It just wouldn't be fair, dying like this. All alone, in an unfamiliar place, with no one around to comfort me and tell me that it was going to be alright. If I hadn't been underwater, I would have cried. I had just made so many new friends, only to have them ripped away from me in a cruel twist of fate.

It wasn't fair.

It just wasn't _fair. _

My consciousness was beginning to slip, and the unbearable cold hurt so much that I wanted to scream. Just before all feeling left me, I opened my eyes one last time, fighting the salty burn, only to see a dark figure cutting its way through the water towards me. It was small, like a child, and I wondered if Zoro had dived in after me. It was definitely something he would do.

I let my eyes drift shut and the world went black, all thought and feeling going with it.

It was cold.

* * *

I awoke to the sound of voices. Some calling my name, others muttering in tones so low I couldn't make them out. I felt something soft below me, and I wondered if maybe this was heaven, and I was floating suspended on a cloud somewhere. But then again, heaven wasn't supposed to be freezing cold, was it? My entire boy felt like it was being held beneath a giant block of ice, and I struggled to open my eyes because of the sheer _exhaustion _I was feeling.

"Hey guys, I think he's waking up!" What sounded like Ussop's voice drifted into my mind.

My eyes fluttered open, and at first, things were so blurry that I couldn't see anything. After a few moments, the fog vleared form my vision, and I saw the eager faces of Nami, Ussop, and Zoro hovering above me.

"Luffy!" All three cried happily, smiles splitting their faces. I groaned as I tried to get up, making it to my elbow before Nami put a gentle hand on my chest. She shook her head and smiled.

"Not so fast, Luffy," she said, pulling the blanket I saw was over me up to me chin. "You've got quite the fever. You need to rest as much as possible." Fever? How was that possible when I felt like I was freezing to death?

"G-Guys," I stuttered, my voice scratchy. "Wh-what happened? Where are we?"

"You almost died, that's what happened!" Zoro yelled down at me. I flinched at his words because in them was enough repressed worry to choke a horse. "What were you thinking!? If curly-brow hadn't come around, you would have drowned. Are you that stupid!?" I bit my lip in shame as I looked into the faces of my three friends. All were wearing similar expressions of worry mixed with intense relief, and guilt dripped through me knowing that it was my fault.

"I'm sorry, guys," I murmured. "... I guess I worried you, huh?" I smiled sadly and felt tears prick in my eyes. I fought against them, though, because there was no way I was going to let them see me cry. "... Wait, curly-brow?" I asked suddenly. "Sanji saved me?"

Ussop nodded. "Yeah," he said. "You were too far away for any of us to get to you in time, and then Sanji just appeared out of the blue and dove in after you. It was awesome!"

"Oh... remind me to tell him thanks," I said groggily. My head was getting fuzzy, and my chest was slowly starting to ache again. I wanted to sleep, but at the same time, I wanted to keep talking to my friends.

"Sanji-kun is here now," Nami said. She pointed with her thumb behind her, and upon looking I saw that the blond-haired boy was leaning up against the far wall staring at me. "He's been here the whole time. Ussop's been thanking him so much Sanji-kun kicked him in the face." She giggled and I smiled.

"S'not funny," Ussop mumbled and rubbed his cheek.

Sanji leaned forward and walked over to us. He was wearing a thick blanket around his shoulders and I saw that he was shivering. "Hey, Luffy," he said, smiling slightly. "You're in my room, in case you were wondering. How are you feeling?"

"Okay, I guess," I said slowly, trying to hide the growing pain inside me. "How about you, are you okay?"

"Me? Never better. Despite your size, you're surprisingly heavy, though. My arms are killing me. Here's your hat, by the way." He brought out my hat from behind his back and set in on the pillow next to my head. Despite everything else, I was glad it was safe.

I bit my lip. "Thanks... and sorry..." I said into the sheets. "It's my fault that you had to save me. I'm really sorry."

Sanji's smile grew more gentle, and he lightly poked me in the forehead. "Idiot. It's fine. Don't worry about it. At least you're not dead."

My guilty frown didn't fade away at his words however, and I let my eyes drift to the door of the room so that I wasn't looking at anyone. There was a long silence in which no one moved or said anything. Zoro sighed deeply.

"You know, Luffy," he said, getting my attention. "After that little stunt you pulled, I wanted to kill you. But one thing kept me from doing it."

I met his eyes and tilted my head in confusion. "What?" I asked.

"The shitty cook over there," Zoro said, jabbing a thumb at Sanji. "He pulled you from the sea when I couldn't. And as much as I hate to admit it, I guess saving your life counts as earning my trust." I realized what he was saying and my eyes widened slightly.

"You mean..."

"Yup. He passed."

At that moment, I wanted to jump from beneath the covers and wrap the green-haired boy in a grateful hug, but unfortunately, the heaviness in my body prevented me from doing so. So instead I grinned as widely as I could and laughed.

"Thanks Zoro!" I said tiredly. "I'm so happy! Now Sanji can be my friend." I felt sleep coming over me and my vision blackened at the edges. I longed to say more, but found that my mouth wasn't working. My friends saw this and let out a consecutive sigh. Zoro put a hand on my forehead and smiled softly.

"Just go to sleep, you idiot," he said. "We can talk when you wake up."

I managed to nod my head before a wave of warm darkness overtook me, and I was whisked away to the land of my happier dreams. The last thing I heard was the rustle of sheets being moved as my friends settled down beside me to rest for the night.

**Damn you guys! It's been a long time! Now, before you kill me for not updating in a while, please take into account the length of this chapter. It is hella long. And I was suffering from SERIOUS writer's block for a while. I hope you enjoy what I've written, and I promise the next update will be swift. Soon, we get to Chopper... Muhahahahaha. Until next time! - Mikki **


	15. Chapter 15

**... I'm in trouble. Hey ya'll! It's been a hell of a long time, hasn't it? Well, before all of you get down to the business of murdering me in my sleep, I just want to take a moment to thank all of you for supporting me, and supporting my stories. I never in a million years would have guessed that I would reach one hundred followers. I've also decided to start answering any questions you guys might have, so please make sure to leave reviews telling me how you think I'm doing and what any of your questions or concerns might be. Now, Onto the Story! **

**Chapter 14: Interlude of Madness**

The first thing Monkey D. Garp noticed when he entered his home that snowy winter evening was the unnatural stillness in the air. Everything was silent, save for the ticking of the grandfather clock in the corner, and a deep, hungry darkness lapped at the edges of the hallway and rooms farther in, making the house feel empty and cold.

Uninviting.

A chill ran up the old man's spine, and he flipped on the hall lights almost immediately in an attempt to dispel some of his discomfort. It didn't work. Behind him, his eldest grandson, Ace, stood shivering in the snowflakes that danced down over him on the uncovered porch. The boy grunted and made to move inside, but paused when he saw the grim look on his immobile grandfather's usually jovial face.

"What's the hold up, old man? I'm freezing my balls off out here." The boy said gruffly, crossing his arms against the cold and edging around the old man obscuring the door.

"Something's not right," Garp muttered, more to himself than to Ace. He peered into the house, scrutinizing the darkness beyond the hall light as waves of unease crawled up and down his spine. In his many years of being a police officer, the old man had honed his ability to sense danger and wrongdoing down to a fine art, and right then, his senses were screaming at him. "Something is definitely not right."

Ace shifted uncomfortably next to him, not understanding what his grandfather was saying. The boy let out a sigh and shook his head. "You're crazy, geezer," he said skeptically. "Nothing's the matter, you're just seein' things. Now can we _please _go inside?" The old man grunted, but took a few steps into the darkened house, enough for ace to squeeze by him and shut the door against the wind.

Ace proceeded to untie his shoes and lay them neatly by the door, not caring for a smack from his grandfather at this time of night for untidiness. The old man remained where he was, a deep frown tugging at the edges of his wrinkled mouth. Ace was about to yell at him to cut it out when Garp finally spoke.

"Luffy? You there boy?"

Utter silence. The shadows didn't even twitch.

"Luffy," Garp called, a little more loudly this time. "Are you there?" When no shout of "Guys! You're back!" was heard, the old man's frown stretched into a scowl, the toned muscles beneath his uniform coiling in anticipation.

The whole exchange between Garp and the shadowed home was enough to make Ace's breath catch, and his heart pound a little faster in his chest. Anything concerning his beloved little brother was instantly taken seriously, for obvious reasons, and the eery quiet of the house suddenly weighed heavily on the boy's ears as he strained for a reply to his grandfather's question. He waited for one minute. Two minutes. Nothing came.

Usually, Ace would have just assumed that his brother was asleep in his room upstairs. It was late, and often the freckled boy and his grandfather would return past the time when Luffy would usually go to bed, meaning that they wouldn't see each other. But something in the way the hallway leading into the house stretched on, like a sinister, empty throat, made the hairs on the back of Ace's neck stiffen, and cause him to immediately bolt in an almost panicked manner past the stoic old man standing next to him down the hall and into the living room.

Ace skidded in his socks over the hardwood and flailed his arms to keep his balance. His heart was beating a million times a second, and he practically lunged for the staircase, the very same one upon which he had found Luffy on the day of the diagnosis, taking the steps two at a time. All of a sudden, something did seem very wrong. Then again, something had been very wrong from the day Luffy became sick.

Ace reached the summit of the stairs after what seemed like an eternity of climbing. He raced down the hallway leading to his and his brother's rooms and slid to a stop in front of a door decorated with pictures of pirate flags and badly-drawn stick figures.

He threw it open, and was greeted with a sight that caused all feeling to leave his body. His brother's bed, made-up and empty, as though the occupant had been absent for a long period of time.

The boy stood there, eyes wide, staring for ten whole seconds before the gravity of the situation finally hit him. "Luffy!" He called frantically, rushing up to the side of the bed as if by getting closer it would somehow make the owner appear. "Luffy, where are you!? Are in here!? Answer me, Luffy!" His brother's room was cold and quiet.

In the background, Ace vaguely heard the pounding of boots on the stairs that announced his grandfather's presence. But right then, he wasn't thinking about anything except the whereabouts of his brother. Wicked scenarios played out in his head of what could be happening to the little boy at this very moment, sending fear into his veins.

Luffy, bloody and alone.

Luffy, curled in one himself, crying from the pain his own body was inflicting upon him.

Luffy, his little, annoying, foolhardy, _wonderful _brother, lying dea-

_No. _Ace told himself. _That will _not _happen._

All at once, Ace ran from the room, across the hall and into the bathroom, throwing the light switch and scanning the tiled space for any sign of the missing boy. When he found nothing, he cursed and bit his lip. He repeated these actions with every room on the second floor, all the while calling Luffy's name loud enough to make his throat hurt and his teeth rattle.

No answer came from any place he checked.

By this time, Garp had caught wind of the situation and had quickly descended the stairs to search the entirety of the ground floor as well. When he too, found neither hide nor hair of his grandson, he too let loose a stream of violent curse words. Worry and fear were starting to gnaw at the old man, and he practically crashed into Ace as he turned around to begin his search again.

The boy wasn't even phased as his face collided with his grandfather's midsection.

"Old man!" He cried, frantically. "Luffy's gone! I looked everywhere and I can't find him!" Ace's mind was going at about a thousand times a second, thoughts of Luffy's potential suffering poisoning him and making his breath come on short, rapid gasps. He was shaking so badly that it made Garp's fingers tremble when he placed a firm hand on his grandson's shoulder.

The old man had only ever seen the boy this shaken on two other occasions. Once, in the waiting room of the hospital, fearfully listening for the results of Luffy's blood-work. Second, clutching his brother's bleeding body as he screamed for help on the bathroom floor.

"Ace, ACE!" Garp shouted, shaking the boy slightly to get his attention. "I know that things look grim right now, but you have got to CALM DOWN. Panicking won't help us find Luffy any faster." The old man was in full cop mood now, pushing away his own worries in an attempt to solve the situation more quickly.

Ace shook his head. "Calm down? CALM DOWN!? How the hell am I supposed to calm down when Luffy could be... could be..." he couldn't go on, and hot tears threatened to build in his eyes which he quickly wiped away for fear of letting Garp see him cry.

Garp sighed and squeezed his grandson's shoulders gently. "I know, I know. But right now, we have to worry about Luffy, okay? Not about things that may or may not have already happened. Can you do that?" Garp looked deep into Ace's frightened gaze and waited until the boy gave a few shaky nods. "Alright. Well, first things first, I'm going to call the hospital to see if they've got him. Chances are that something happened while we were gone and Luffy called an ambulance to come get him."

The explanation did nothing to appease Ace's fears, and as Garp half stalked half sprinted to the phone on the living room table, Ace found himself becoming weak at the knees with worry and grief.

He sank to the ground and scooted backwards until the small of his back bumped into a wall He pulled his knees up to his chin and his face in them, desperately trying to quell the emotions that threatened to overtake him. Luffy was his treasure. When Garp had first adopted him when he was seven, Ace hadn't liked the small boy at all. He was loud, idiotic, and a complete crybaby. Everything that Ace considered himself not to be. Luffy follwed his new big brother everywhere in those days, no matter how many times Ace had tried to ditch him. It wasn't until the boy had caught him crying up among the branches of the tree in the backyard that he had really opened up to him (only after forcing him rather painfully to swear to never tell anyone that he had cried).

From then on, the two had been inseparable. And over time, Ace had come to love Luffy like a true brother, despite the fact that they shared no blood. As Ace sat there trembling on the carpet, memories of the times they had spent together flooded his mind, causing his sadness to grow.

The two of them staring martial arts together.

Midnight trips to the fountain in the center of the town conducted without grandpa's knowledge.

Secrets spilled over the light of a candle dripping hot wax over two equally excited hands huddled beneath a sheet.

Ace bit his lip so hard it started to bleed. Those were memories from a time long past, back when the world was an adventure and Luffy was the brave adventurer, determined to live his life however he wanted to live it. A time before the illness had decided to take root within him and end his fantasies. Forever.

It just wasn't fair! Luffy had told Ace thousands of times over the years about his numerous hopes and dreams, only to have them all broken in the span of twenty-four hours. It made Ace want to vomit. Out of all the people on Earth, why did it have to be his little brother to contract that disease? Hell, Ace would've switched places with him in a heartbeat of he'd been given the chance, but no such luck had occurred.

Even after the diagnosis, Luffy had remained his cheerful and optimistic self. His smiles maybe weren't as wide, and he didn't talk about growing up to become an explorer as often, if at all. To any outside observer, it would've appeared that almost nothing had changed. In reality, however, everything was completely different. That was what sickened Ace the most.

He was forced to treat Luffy differently, and that hurt his brother more than words could express. Ace saw it, whenever he would get caught stifling a sob at his brother's bedside, or casting a worried glance in the boy's direction. The small sliver of hurt, and defeat bordering on hopelessness, that swam in Luffy's eyes at those moments was almost unbearably painful for Ace.

And his little brother knew this. And made no attempt to stop it.

Ace dug his fingers into the flesh of his knees, trying to use the pain to banish these thoughts from his head, but to no avail. He tried to think about the last time he had seen Luffy, alive, safe, in his own home, but then paused.

When was the last time he either saw or spoke to the boy?

All at once, hot guilt began to seep into Ace's limbs and sear his insides. Now that he thought about it, he hadn't seen Luffy in well over three days, he and the old man returning to the house each night well after his brother would have fallen asleep. He knew that his grandfather checked in on him every night, and him being so tired from the day's training had just shrugged any possible meeting with Luffy in favor of sleep. It made Ace claw deeper into his knees, the soft prick of blood as it raced out of fresh marks greeting his fingertips.

What kind of brother was he? Luffy was suffering, more heavily than Ace had ever been made so suffer, and he couldn't even sacrifice a few minutes of sleep to make sure that the boy was alive each day? Tears came unbidden to the elder boy's eyes and cascaded down his cheeks. Now, his brother was gone. And with him, any chance for Ace to apologize for his actions, to show his brother than he was, in fact, loved. Very much.

"...Alright. I understand." Garp said lowly from the living room. "... Yes, I'll make sure to keep you apprised of the situation... Yes... Yes... No... Yes, thank you." With that, the old man hung up the phone and let loose a soul-shattering sigh, one that sounded like all his years accumulated in a single breath. Ace peered fearfully over the tops of his knees.

"... Well?" He said after a long moment of silence between the two.

Garp shook his head, and Ace felt his heart shatter. "If he's not there, then where the hell would he be!?" He cried, springing to his feet. "Luffy wouldn't just run off, he's not that stupid! Something must have happened to him! We have to find him, geezer, we just HAVE TO!"

Garp let loose another long sigh, but his eyes betrayed his immense worry. "You're right, boy." He said gruffly, not commenting on the tears still trickling freely down Ace's cheeks. "I'll phone the station and tell them Luffy's gone. You grab your coat and boots, we're going out there to look for him." Ace nodded quickly and went to do what his grandfather had asked (for once) without argument. He pulled on his clothes with an urgency that he had seldom ever displayed, and waited anxiously by the door for Garp to finish his call. He wanted to find Luffy as soon as possible. If he really was somewhere outside, then chances were he was cold and sick. These days, Luffy's tolerance for cold weather had dropped significantly, even a light breeze sending him into shivers.

Just thinking about it made Ace's racing heart ache.

As Garp finally appeared at the doorway, Ace threw open the door and stormed out into the now-snowstorm. The flakes were so heavy that he could barely see ten feet in any direction, and his tears froze on his face, stinging him. Ace grit his teeth and moved forward. There was no way in hell a measly storm was going to keep him from his brother. Beside him, his grandfather barked orders, saying that they should search Luffy's favorite spots first then move on to other places. Ace called back an affirmation, and the two set off into the gray mass, armed with nothing but flashlights and the coats on their backs.

They called Luffy's name over the growing drifts of snow. Their voices grew more desperate with each time, and Ace feared his heart would burst the the sheer amount of worry he was feeling.

He felt like praying for the first time in his life. Both for Luffy and himself. In someways, Ace felt like this was all his fault, and as he trudged through the cold wetness around him, his mind began to wander.

Had he been the one to drive Luffy away?

Was his lack of love and caring for the boy what caused him to leave the warmth and safety of his home?

Ace wanted desperately to know the answers to these questions.

But at the same time, he wanted nothing in the whole world less.

* * *

It was around one year after Luffy discovered that he was dying, and coincidentally, his birthday. Ace found him sitting alone in his room, knees drawn up to his chin bathed in a swathe of silver moonlight from his open window. The curtains fluttered in the slight wind, like great purple arms reaching for the small body on the bed to grab him up and fly him away. Even in the low-light, Ace could see that Luffy was shivering.

The elder boy huffed at his brother's stupidity, and was about to chew him out for being so careless, when he noticed the small red stain on the inside of Luffy's left wrist. Something cold spread from deep inside Ace's stomach then, and his eyes quickly traced what he now saw was a small wound dripping hot blood onto his little brother's knee. Immediately, he strode over to the boy and seized his wrist, turning it upward so that it caught the light and danced like rubies.

Luffy yelped at the sudden contact, eyes gazing fearfully up at Ace who scrutinized the cut. "Ouch! That hurts! Ace, what the hell're you-?"

"What did you do?" Ace asked lowly, tone dangerous.

A look of fear, mixed with what looked like shame, flitted across Luffy's features. The boy's eyes widened, and he winced as Ace pressed his thumb down over the still-bloody skin. Luffy bit his lip and looked down at his bed, avoiding Ace's gaze. He didn't answer. On the bedspread next to him, Ace spied a small silver razor with a smear of blood across the blade, the kind his grandfather kept in the house to open boxes.

"What did you do, Luffy?" Ace asked again, this time with more force behind his words. He peered down at his brother's wrist and deduced that it wasn't a large enough cut to be harmful, but that it would most likely scar because of all the blood loss. When Luffy refused to answer a second time, Ace lashed out with his free hand and gripped the boy's small chin in his fingers, forcing him to look up. His black eyes were wide, and Ace saw tears bubbling up from within them, large and on the verge of spilling. Ace grimaced at the expression, but softened his words and brought his other hand up to cup Luffy's cheek.

The two were silent for a long time, each unable to look away from the other, and eventually, Ace swallowed and spoke. His words were careful, and oozed from his lips like sour milk.

"Please, Luffy," he pleaded softly, fear creeping into his voice. "What did you do?"

The tears that Luffy had clearly been trying to suppress leaked down his face then, tiny sobs beginning to wrack his slight frame and deep shame shining within his once bright eyes. He brought up a hand to wipe them away, but it didn't do any good as they were quickly replaced. For several minutes, the boy just cried, his wrist trembling in Ace's now gentle grip.

Ace sat down on the edge of the bed and wrapped his arms around his brother, letting him lean his head into his chest and sob for all he was worth. Ace couldn't remember the last time he had seen Luffy cry. He had been so strong about everything for so long, thought, it wasn't surprising in the least that he had finally broken. And so Ace just let him. He asked no further questions, and carefully positioned the wounded limb so that it wouldn't get blood all down his front. He, himself, was fighting off worried tears at the revelation that someone he held so close had purposefully harmed themselves.

After a long time, Luffy's sobs quieted to loud hiccups. "I'm sorry." He said quietly into Ace's chest. "I'm so, so sorry."

Ace rested his chin on the crown of Luffy's head. "Why?" He said simply.

"It's a counter," Luffy said slowly, as if unsure how Ace would react. "I'm counting down my years."

Ace felt anger flare up from within him. He roughly gripped Luffy's shoulders and pushed him away to look at him. "Why the _hell _would you even do something like that!?" He cried angrily, shaking the small boy a little for good measure. "That's no excuse for tearing up your arm! Arg...! Dammit, Luffy! Do you even understand how much Gramps and I care about you!? How much we _love _you!? Why the fucking hell would hurt yourself if you knew how much it would affect us!? WHY!?" Ace lost the fight with his own tears and in turn squeezed his eyes shut.

He leaned forward so that his forehead was touching Luffy's.

"Why...?" The elder boy whispered. "How could you even think of...?" He took a deep breath, steadying himself. "Don't ever do it again. I don't care what you've been told, or what you think in that sick, twisted skull of yours, but there is no way I am letting you die. You hear me, Luffy? You are NOT gonna die. Not if I have anything to say about it." Ace's voice broke on the last words and he resigned himself to crying quietly, face still pressed against his brother's.

Luffy sat in front of him in stunned silence, almost as if he was unsure of what he should do. In the end he settled for wrapping his tiny arms around his bog brother and letting him cry, as he had been allowed to do a few moments prior.

"I'm sorry." Luffy whispered. The apology hung in the air like mist, but it was unclear what is was for.

Ace sniffed. "You're not gonna die." he whispered painfully.

"I'm sorry."

"You're not gonna die."

"I'm sorry."

"You're not gonna die."

Against him, Ace felt Luffy swallow.

"Okay, you win," he said slowly, sadly. "I won't die."

Ace's tears flowed more quickly then, because in his heart, he knew that those words would never be true, that Luffy was only saying them to make him feel better. It was a lie, but the kind that was meant to protect, not to hurt. But in the end, it didn't matter. It cut through Ace like a knife, and the reality that, sooner or later, the younger brother and the older brother would be parting ways hit him like a ton of bricks.

He couldn't breath for the sadness clogging his throat.

Luffy's arms tightened, and together the brothers cried until the moonlight shriveled in the sky and gave way to a brilliant gold sunrise, the most beautiful that either boy had ever seen in their entire lives.

It is strange how beautiful things become when you've only got a little while to enjoy them.

**Wooooo! I'm back, baby! This was by far the hardest chapter I've had to write thus far. I've been negligent, my friends, but please find it in your hearts to forgive me! Don't forget to leave reviews because I will be answering them at the end of the next chapter. Until then, stay frosty my loves! -Mikki**


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